Rare US Snowstorm Kills 4, Grounds 2,100+ Flights, Shuts Schools as Texas & South Freeze

Rare US Snowstorm: A rare frigid winter storm charged through Texas and the northern Gulf Coast on Tuesday, blanketing New Orleans and Houston with snow, closing highways, grounding nearly all flights and canceling school for millions of students more used to hurricane dismissals than snow days.

The storm prompted the first ever blizzard warnings for several coastal counties near the Texas-Louisiana border, and snow plows were at the ready in the Florida Panhandle. Heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain are expected around the Deep South as a blast of Arctic air plunges much of the Midwest and the eastern U.S. into a deep freeze.

Nearly 2,000 flights to, from, or within the U.S. were canceled Tuesday, with about 10,000 others delayed, according to online tracker FlightAware.com. Both Houston airports suspended flight operations starting Tuesday.

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Nearly every flight was cancelled at New Orleans Louis Armstrong International Airport, though officials said the airport itself would remain open “as long as the conditions are safe.” Most airlines plan to resume normal operations Wednesday.

The unprecedented weather conditions have brought roads and airplanes to a standstill. At least 4 deaths have been reported in Texas and Georgia and Milwaukee due to cold exposure, according to an ABC News report.

Louisiana's schools and state offices have been closed, as have schools from Houston to New Orleans to parts of Georgia.

Louisiana governor warns of ice

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In a statement issued on Tuesday, Louisiana governor Jeff Landry has said that the measures taken tell ‘how severe this weather event is’.

"It's going to get dangerously cold over the next seven days. Even if the roads start to look clear, please stay off them. Black ice is a big problem -- you can't see it, but it's extremely slippery and dangerous," Landry said during a press briefing.

The mayor of Savannah, Georgia, pointed out that while the region is equipped to handle hurricanes and tropical storms, ice and snow are something that is difficult.

"Our reality is this, we can do hurricanes and tropical storms, alright? We don't do cold and we don't do ice well. If you don't have to go outside, don't. Stay home,"Mayor Van Johnson said on Monday.

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