Snowstorm continues to blanket Deep South before heading north

A pre-winter storm that roared through the Deep South and coated half of North Carolina and portions of Virginia in snow pushed northward on Saturday, leaving motorists to brave potentially icy roads and utility crews trying to restore heat and light to thousands.

Forecasters were warning that the slush created during daylight would turn to ice from temperatures dropping below freezing, creating black ice on roads, bridges and other elevated surfaces.

“That catches people more off guard than when you see snow,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Mike Moneypenny of the Raleigh, N.C., office.

Before Friday, the forecast for North Carolina called for little more than an inch of snow for the central counties, with more expected in the higher elevations. The frigid temperatures behind a cold front combined with moisture off the Gulf of Mexico to bring the unusual wintry weather to parts of the South.

By Saturday, Burnsville had reported 14½ inches of snow. The Hendersonville area had 12 inches, and Asheville recorded 8 inches.

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Across the South, preliminary reports to the National Weather Service showed up to 10 inches of snowfall in northwest Georgia, with 7 inches of accumulation in parts of metro Atlanta. Ten inches of snow was reported in Anniston, Ala., while up to 7 inches was reported in Mississippi. Rare flurries were even reported in New Orleans.

“It’s very, very abnormal and rare that we would get totals like that this time of year,” said Sid King, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in the Atlanta area. “It’s really not even winter yet. I would not be surprised if we broke a lot of records.”

By Saturday evening, Duke Energy was reporting 22,340 customers without power in North Carolina, down from more than 39,000 earlier in the day.

A winter storm warning was scheduled to expire at 7 p.m. Saturday for parts of Virginia. Richmond had 3½ inches of snow, as did Prince Edward County. Virginia State Police reported hundreds of crashes blamed on icy road conditions.

Temperatures forecast for Sunday weren’t favorable for melting the snow, according to forecasters. Highs across much of North Carolina were not expected to get out of the 30s on Sunday, and after a brief warmup on Monday, a second round of cold air was likely to stall the melting.

At the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, which sees more passengers annually than any other airport in the world, spokesman Reese McCranie said more than 400 flights were canceled Saturday. That’s after nearly 1,200 cancellations Friday.

A freeze warning was in effect Saturday for parts of northern Florida, southeast Alabama and southwest Georgia. The weather service said freezing temperatures can harm vulnerable plants and animals.

Parts of the Northeast including New England are also expecting a share of the snowfall this weekend.