Major winter storm spreading dangerous ice and snow from Arkansas to Georgia, Carolinas
Snow and ice will end up falling along a 1,500-mile-long swath of the southern United States during the latter part of this week triggering scores of accidents, road closures and flight cancellations.
Towns across Texas were covered with rarely-seen snow on Jan. 9, transforming the Lone Star State into a winter wonderland—but a dangerous one for drivers.
The second major winter storm of 2025 will target the south-central and southeastern United States into the weekend and will create dangerous conditions on the roads as well as a slew of flight delays and cancellations from Dallas to Atlanta and Charlotte, AccuWeather meteorologists warn.
The storm will produce 1-6 inches of snow from Arkansas through much of Tennessee and the southern Appalachians into Friday. Within this area, there will be pockets where 6-12 inches of snow can fall from Little Rock, Arkansas, as well as eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina mountains. The storm brought heavy snow and ice to a large part of central and northeastern Texas and Oklahoma into Thursday night.
Sleet will limit the amount of snow that falls from southern Arkansas through the northern parts of Mississippi, Alabama and South Carolina on Friday.
Freezing rain is expected along the Interstate-20 corridor, can be especially dangerous for motorists and pedestrians.
This will be a snowstorm for much of Tennessee, among other areas west along the I-40 corridor to central and northern Arkansas and central and eastern Oklahoma.
On Friday, the snowstorm will envelop Nashville and Knoxville, Tennessee. Although some sleet may reduce the accumulation in Memphis and Chatanooga, Tennessee, this will be a disruptive winter storm for the cities.
A quick burst of snow on the front end of the storm will bring from 1-3 inches of snow to Atlanta on northeast along the I-85 corridor in South Carolina and North Carolina on Friday.
From 1 to perhaps 3 inches of snow will fall as far to the north as Chicago and Detroit on Friday with slippery streets and highways as well as airline delays due to deicing operations.
Storm chaser Aaron Rigsby reports from downtown Atlanta, Georgia, as snow begins to hit the region on Jan. 10.
North of Oklahoma, Arkansas and Tennessee, some snow will extend for a few hundred miles over the Central states. While that will be enough to bring a slippery accumulation to many areas that were affected by a major snow and ice storm just days earlier, snowfall will tend to be light.
Farther south, pockets of sleet and freezing rain can occur for a time from north of I-10 to near and south of I-20. Some areas that appear to be wet may be covered with a thin sheet of clear ice that can be especially dangerous for motorists.
The strengthening storm will grab a significant amount of Gulf of Mexico moisture and release that in the form of drenching downpours, including some thunderstorms along the I-10 corridor from Texas to northern Florida. "The downpours from Houston to New Orleans and perhaps Mobile, Alabama, and Pensacola, Florida, can be heavy enough to trigger urban flooding," AccuWeather Meteorologist Brandon Buckingham said.
In the southern Appalachians, the storm, with its heavy snow and pockets of ice, will create additional hardships for those still homeless and recovering from deadly and destructive flooding from Hurricane Helene, which struck back in September.
An Asheville, North Carolina, resident recorded the scenes of damage that remained on Dec. 27, three months after Hurricane Helene devastated the community.
Wide range of wintry impacts east of Appalachians
Motorists should be prepared for dangerous driving conditions from the winter storm around Atlanta, Charlotte and Greenville, South Carolina. While some snow may fall in these areas during the first hours of the storm from late Thursday night to Friday morning, multiple hours of freezing rain and some sleet are in store, which can glaze exposed surfaces. Bridges, overpasses, elevated surfaces or areas that do not receive direct sunlight will be especially slippery. Some sporadic power outages are likely.
The storm is likely to end as plain rain and drizzle on Friday night, but some locations could experience a brief period of wet snow before the storm departs.
North of Charlotte, the colder air will likely hold its ground, with general and persistent zone of snow and ice in store for North Carolina and southern Virginia with widespread slippery and dangerous travel from Friday to Saturday.
In the Carolina Piedmont, enough freezing rain can accumulate on trees and power lines to raise the risk of power outages.
The storm will also spread some accumulating snow farther to the north in the mid-Atlantic, central Appalachians and part of New England this weekend.
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