Winter Storm Cora will wring snow and ice across much of the South from Texas to Virginia, including from Dallas-Ft., through Friday evening. Worth and Little Rock to Nashville, Atlanta and Charlotte. The winter mess will likely make travel difficult and in some cases icing could be heavy enough to cause scattered power outages.
(MORE: Cora Maps tracker | Winter storm names 2024-2025)
Cora’s latest status and warnings
The winter storm is bringing a mixture of snow, sleet and freezing rain over parts of several southern states, as shown in the radar photo below.
Up to 6 inches of snow has already fallen in parts of the Texas Panhandle, far eastern New Mexico and southern Oklahoma.
Up to 4 to 5 inches of snow has piled up in the far northern suburbs of Dallas-Ft. Worth. By Thursday afternoon, 1.5 inches of snow had fallen at DFW Airport.
Norman, Oklahoma, reported 3 to 4 inches of snow, and 2 inches of snow had already accumulated near Ft. Smith, Arkansas.
Current radar
The map below shows several winter weather alerts, including winter storm warnings and advisories, from the Southern Plains to the Southeast. These winter warnings are in effect in Atlanta, Birmingham, Charlotte, Dallas-Fort Worth, Little Rock, Louisville, Memphis, Nashville, Oklahoma City and Raleigh.
Expect hazardous travel conditions, delays and closures in some of these areas as a result of this storm, especially in the dark blue areas.
(MORE: First 1-inch snowfall in years in the Southeast)
Winter weather warnings
Forecast timing
Thursday evening
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Snow is expected Thursday night through early Friday from northern Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas to Missouri, northern and central Arkansas to Illinois, western Kentucky, western Tennessee, northern Mississippi and northern Alabama.
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A band of sleet and freezing rain could extend from central and northern Texas to southern Arkansas, northern Mississippi and perhaps northwestern Georgia.
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Driving will likely be dangerous in many of these areas.
Friday
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Any winter precipitation in Oklahoma and Texas should end in the morning.
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Snow will fall from the Mid-South region into Kentucky, Tennessee, the far northern parts of Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia into North Carolina, the state of South Carolina and Virginia.
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Areas just south of this main snow band may see a wintry mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain, mostly near and north of Interstate 20 from Alabama to Georgia and South Carolina.
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This could lead to treacherous travel through these areas, with some roads possibly becoming impassable, especially in hilly or mountainous terrain.
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Metro areas that could see wintry travel conditions at least part of Friday include Atlanta, Birmingham, Charlotte, Huntsville, Knoxville, Little Rock, Memphis and Nashville.
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Lighter snow from this system could also travel as far north as the Ohio Valley and Great Lakes. That snow will spread into the mid-Atlantic and parts of the Northeast Friday evening.
Saturday
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The storm will move out of the east, but some areas of snow may linger near the East Coast as well as in the Appalachians, especially early.
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Parts of far eastern North Carolina may also see some light sleet or freezing rain early in the morning.
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Travel can be challenging due to the snow and ice that has already fallen from the Tennessee Valley to the Delmarva Peninsula, especially early.
Snow and ice forecast amounts
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Locally heavy snow accumulations are expected from far northern Texas and eastern Oklahoma to Arkansas, northern Mississippi, northern Alabama, far northern Georgia, Tennessee and far western North Carolina. 2 inches of snow is likely in most of these areas. Up to a foot of snow is possible in some spots from southeastern Oklahoma to Arkansas and northwest Mississippi.
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South of there, the wintry mix will complicate expected snowfall, but an inch of snow and sleet could accumulate in some areas near and north of cities like Atlanta, Greenville, South Carolina and Charlotte. Most of this area will likely turn to freezing rain.
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Elsewhere, snow drifts of several inches are expected, from Kansas and Missouri to the Great Lakes and the East.
(MORE: Why snowfall forecasts sometimes change)
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Accumulating sleet or freezing rain is possible from central and northern Texas to northern Georgia and the Carolinas, mostly in the pink shaded areas below.
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This will be enough to make roads dangerous and travel discouraged. In addition, there is a chance that the accumulation of freezing rain in some places could be heavy enough to cause widespread power outages in the Ark-La-Tex region and from around Atlanta to the Carolinas.
Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at Weather.com and has covered national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite subjects. Contact him Blue sky, X (formerly Twitter) And Facebook.
