Vicious storm ices the South by Jay Wynne
Freezing rain coated parts of the US’s South with up to three-quarters of an inch (19 mm) of ice on Thursday, leaving more than 700,000 homes and businesses without power by Friday morning.
The heaviest coating of ice was reported to be in southwestern parts of the state of North Carolina. In the city of Charlotte, a man lost his life after a 100-year-old tree collapsed into his front room under the weight of the ice.
In Atlanta, Georgia, traffic backed up for miles after accidents forced the closure of several interstate roads, despite authorities’ best efforts to combat the ice with salt.
As the storm moved on it produced a dangerous mix of sleet, snow and freezing rain across New Hampshire and Maine. Up to eight inches (20 cm) of snow was forecast for inland Maine before the storm pulled away.
The storm has now moved into eastern Canada, leaving many with a quieter day on Saturday. However on Saturday night into Sunday a new weather system will pull out of the South, and may bring some rain and snow to southern Virginia.
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