A storm covered parts of the southern United States with snow, freezing rain and sleet, causing traffic jams in Tennessee and Kentucky as it passed through the Appalachians heading northeast and into the mid-Atlantic region.
In Nashville, 16 centimeters (6.3 inches) of snow fell Thursday, beating the city’s previous record for Jan. 6, which was 10 centimeters (4 inches) and has remained since 1977, the National Weather Service said. Freezing rain and sleet covered areas around the Tennessee-Alabama border, said Scott Unger, a meteorologist for the service in Nashville.
Authorities urged people to travel only when necessary, as the Nashville Metropolitan Police reported dozens of accidents and other driver problems that complicated traffic on various roads. A series of accidents and other problems generated traffic jams on various highways in the region.
On the Kentucky border, Montgomery County, Tennessee, authorities were also dealing with dozens of crashes, including one that killed a person and involved a commercial vehicle on Interstate 24, according to Lt. Bill. Miller, a spokesman for the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
Rebekah Hammonds, regional spokeswoman for the Tennessee Department of Transportation, tweeted Thursday that the agency is “clearing as much as we can, but problems will continue as snow continues to fall and temperatures drop.”
Temperatures are expected to drop overnight, so everything on the ground is going to freeze and cause dangerous road conditions on Friday, Unger warned.
Tennessee schools canceled classes and local governments temporarily closed their buildings, even in places as far west as Memphis and Shelby County, where there was snow and ice.
Governor Bill Lee closed state offices throughout Tennessee. In Nashville and Memphis flights were canceled.
For his part, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear warned that the snow falling in the state is “real and dangerous,” with hundreds of car crashes in various parts. Some areas had already received more than 15 centimeters (half a foot) by early afternoon, said Ron Steve, an expert with the National Weather Service.
Beshear declared a state of emergency and said he called in teams from the Kentucky National Guard to assist in the response, especially where interstate highways were closed. Search and rescue teams were activated to support stranded motorists.
Beshear closed state offices at noon Thursday and subsequently extended the closure until Friday.