Major winter storm: South braces for big blast of snow, ice

Forecasts of snow and ice as far south as Georgia have put a big part of the Southeast on an emergency preparedness footing as shoppers scoured store shelves for storm supplies and crews raced to treat highways and roads as a major winter storm approached from the Midwest.

In Virginia, where a blizzard left thousands of motorists trapped on clogged highways earlier this month, outgoing Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency and urged people to take the approaching storm seriously. In North Carolina, some store shelves were stripped bare of essentials including bread and milk.

Parts of Tennessee could get as much as a foot (30 centimeters) of snow, forecasters said, and northern Mississippi and the Tennessee Valley region of Alabama could receive light snow accumulations. With lows predicted in the 20s across a wide area, any precipitation could freeze, making driving difficult if not hazardous. The eastern part of the state is forecasted to see wind gusts of up to 70 mph (113 kph).

Travis Wagler said he hadn’t seen such a run on supplies at his Abbeville, South Carolina, hardware store in at least two winters.

"We’re selling everything you might expect: sleds, but also salt, shovels and firewood," Wagler said from Abbeville Hardware on Friday. That region faced predictions of a quarter-inch (0.6 centimeters) of ice or more on trees and power lines, which could lead to days without electricity.

A winter storm warning extended from just north of metro Atlanta to Arkansas in the west and upstate New York in the north, covering parts of at least 14 states including Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia. Travel problems could extend into metro Atlanta.

A mixture of ice and up to 2 inches (5 centimeters) of snow is expected in Atlanta, according to an advisory issued Saturday by the National Weather Service. Atlanta is also predicted to see sustained winds of up to 35 mph (56 kph) with gusts as high as 60 mph (95 kph).

Nearly 2,000 flights within the U.S. have already been canceled for Sunday in anticipation of snow and ice in the South, according to the flight tracking site flightaware.com, which tracks flight cancellations worldwide. A major U.S. airport hub for American Airlines – Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina – led the list of cancellations for Sunday at U.S. airports.

American Airlines canceled nearly 500 Sunday flights, or 17% of its daily schedule. Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines canceled more than 130 of its Sunday flights, the flight tracking site showed.

Possible power outages and travel problems could be exacerbated by any coating of ice — and winds gusting to 60 mph (95 kph) in some areas, the National Weather Service said.

"Hopefully, the storm will underdeliver, but it could overdeliver. We just don’t know," said Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp as he announced storm preparations. He was taking no chances as he declared a state of emergency and crews began treating major roads and highways in north Georgia.

Gov. Henry McMaster in neighboring South Carolina also issued an emergency order, saying the state would likely start feeling the effects of the major winter storm Sunday morning.

At a news conference on Saturday, McMaster urged residents to stay off the roads.

"This is going to be a pretty bad storm in the upper part of the state," McMaster said. "The good news is it’ll be coming on the weekend and holiday on Monday, so schools and offices will be closed. That’s good because there won’t be that many people on the roads and that’s good because we’re expecting a lot of ice on the roads."

In addition to ice or snow accumulation, state officials said motorists should be cautious because trees or power lines might be down as a result of the storm too.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper signed an emergency order and the administration urged people to stay at home once the storm hits. The state highway agency warned that labor shortages meant crews might not respond to problems areas as quickly as normal.

The storm, after its expected weekend dip into the Southeast, was then expected to head into the Northeast while dropping snow, sleet and rain around the densely populated Eastern Seaboard. Officials across New England warned residents to stay indoors on Saturday as a blast of Arctic air drives wind chill temperatures as low as minus 35 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 37 degrees Celsius).

Many schools and businesses will be closed Monday for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, which could help reduce travel problems, along with temperatures that are supposed to rise into the 40s.