Gulf Coast hit by historic winter storm, outpaces Twin Cities snow totals

Minnesotans usually flock south to escape the snow and cold during the harsh winter months

In a bizarre turn of events, a winter storm is tearing through the southeastern part of the country.

However, there is no snow headed to the Twin Cities metro in the foreseeable future.

Snowfall in the south

Dig deeper:

From Houston to New Orleans to the Florida Panhandle, this rare winter storm sweeping across the Gulf Coast has paralyzed infrastructure and grounded flights in the region.

The winter blast has hit areas not equipped for these types of conditions, so many of the areas impacted have shut down. Officials are asking folks to hunker down as conditions turn deadly, and they wait for things to thaw.

"We are going to have ice on the roads it could be a very potentially dangerous situation," said Daniel Gitlin, Public Information Officer for New Orleans Department of Transportation and Development.

Local perspective:

FOX 9 Chief Meteorologist Ian Leonard said this regional contrast of snow totals in January is also historic.

"Houston, New Orleans, Panama City, maybe even Tallahassee are all having a much, much snowier month than the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul," said Leonard.

Leonard added more perspective on the stark contrast between regions.

"So far in January, the Twin Cities had 1.7 inches of snow. We are in such a dry period. Over 16 inches below average snowfall. I look out 10-to-14 days by looking at the charts and there is no real amount of snow coming in my forecast," said Leonard.

The Source: FOX 9 Weather, National Weather Service, Associated Press

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