Storm Moves East, Dumps Rare Snow on Virginia

A storm that had crossed the nation moved into the mid-Atlantic states Friday, giving Virginia its first substantial snow in four years and shutting down that state’s government.

Snow was scattered from Iowa across the Ohio Valley to Virginia. Rain, snow and sleet fell in parts of the Carolinas, Tennessee and northern Georgia.

“Oh Lordy, it’s just icy all over up here,” said Georgia State Patrol operator A. Thompson from Toccoa.

Schools were closed in parts of northern Georgia, Virginia, the District of Columbia, South Carolina, Indiana and southern Ohio. All Maryland schools were closed Friday, and only one West Virginia county opened schools.

From two to five inches of snow had fallen on Virginia by midday, but most residents had not seen substantial snowfall in four years.

Virginia state offices closed in Richmond. South Carolina Gov. Carroll A. Campbell Jr. delayed opening state offices for nonessential personnel in some parts of the state.

Legions of people descended on stores to stock up on necessities.

“Milk and bread are the main things, of course,” said Nancy Johnson, manager of a Safeway in Williamsburg, Va. “Of course, rock salt. They’d probably be buying shovels if we had any left. We’ve sold out our five-year supply. Years of snow shovels and scrapers are gone.”

About 20,000 customers were without power during the night in northern Georgia because of the ice storm, said Georgia Power spokesman Rick Kimble. Power was restored to many of them by midmorning. Up to seven inches of snow fell at higher elevations.

Up to five inches fell in South Carolina, near Caesar’s Head, but snow falls so rarely in the state that snowplows are hard to find.

“We don’t have a massive amount of equipment dedicated to this, but we are about as ready as we can be,” said Steve Brown, city manager in Greenwood.

As much as six inches fell in West Virginia, and the phone rang off the hook at Coopers Rock State Forest as cross-country skiers checked conditions, said park superintendent Alfred Kerns.

“We get a lot of people who don’t want to go to the ski resorts where it’s crowded,” Kerns said.

Thousands of people lost power in western Arkansas because of ice buildup Thursday, and utility officials said it might be days before everyone’s service is restored.

Near Hot Springs, Ark., the roof of Lakeside Intermediate School collapsed Thursday from all the rain. None of the 750 students was injured. They were sent home for a long weekend.