XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh   
   From: rander3127@gmail.com   
      
   Rare winter storm that smacked much of the South turns deadly; dig-out   
   begins   
      
   PENSACOLA, Fla. - Light snow fell on this panhandle city Wednesday as the   
   last remnant of an unprecedented, deadly storm rolled out to sea after   
   smashing snow records from here to New Orleans and casting a blanket of ice   
   across a region not targeted by such a severe wintry assault in   
   generations.   
      
   The storm's impact will be felt for days in cities in the South   
   unaccustomed to the deep freeze that has gripped most of the nation this   
   week. About 20 million people across the region were under winter weather   
   advisories and warnings, according to the National Weather Service.   
      
   The Florida capital of Tallahassee, which usually gets temperatures in the   
   60s at this time of year, is expecting an overnight low of 20 degrees.   
   Sleet and snow-topped 2 inches in at least one location in Tallahassee,   
   according to preliminary snowfall estimates from the National Weather   
   Service in Tallahassee.   
      
   “This has been the worst winter storm to hit the Gulf Coast in decades,"   
   AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter said.   
      
   The dig-out, so common in the nation's northern tier, was underway in   
   earnest from Texas to Florida while challenged by a dearth of snow plows.   
   Residents were urged not to travel on the iced-over roadways, and   
   temperatures were expected to linger around freezing into Thursday.   
      
   The storm began its march Tuesday in Texas, blanketing highways and   
   snarling traffic before making its way east. Neighboring Louisiana saw it   
   first-ever blizzard warning. New Orleans International Airport recorded 8   
   inches of snow, triple the previous record set more than 60 years ago, the   
   National Weather Service reported. Records fell in Alabama, and parts of   
   Mississippi were hit with almost a foot of snow.   
      
   In Florida, the Pensacola area broke the state's 130-year-old record for   
   total snowfall. The National Weather Service reported 8.9 inches in   
   Pensacola and 9.8 inches in Milton, both breaking the previous Florida   
   record of 4 inches set in 1954.   
      
   "We plead with our with our residents to continue to stay off the road,"   
   Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves said. "They not only put themselves at risk,   
   but they put our first responders at risk - and our ability to respond at   
   risk."   
      
   'Crazy to see':Parts of Gulf Coast get first-ever blizzard warning   
      
   Developments:   
      
   ? Interstate 10 was closed Wednesday evening in both directions for about   
   200 miles from the Alabama-Florida state line to near Tallahassee because   
   of the icy conditions on the road and expected freezing temperatures   
   overnight.   
      
   ? The 10 inches of snowfall in New Orleans on Tuesday shattered the   
   previous official record of 2.7 inches in December 1963, although   
   unofficially the February 1895 storm also dumped 10 inches at the city's   
   Audubon Park. The last time New Orleans received any measurable snowfall   
   was 2009, according to the National Weather Service.   
      
   ? In Alabama, 7.5 inches fell in Mobile, where such accumulations have not   
   been seen in more than 60 years, according to the weather service.   
      
   Beyonsleigh, Taylor Drift and more:The amazing names plows adopt while   
   pushing snow   
   Corneilous Hughes, 12, left, and Chris Jasper, 20, wore Louisiana mittens   
   (socks) on their hands as they made snowballs in Alexandria, La., on Jan.   
   21, 2025.   
   Jacksonville Airport records first measurable snow since 1989   
      
   In its Record Event Report on Wednesday night, the National Weather Service   
   confirmed that one-tenth of an inch of frozen precipitation, mostly in the   
   form of sleet, fell at the Jacksonville International Airport just after 5   
   a.m. Wednesday.   
      
   While Northeast Florida experienced far less snow than the Florida   
   Panhandle or Southeast Georgia — the Panhandle town of Milton recorded   
   nearly 10 inches on Tuesday and Wednesday — the First Coast's snowstorm   
   ranks among Jacksonville's top five snowfalls in National Weather Service   
   archives dating to 1871.   
      
   Jacksonville's last measurable snow before Wednesday occurred on Dec. 23,   
   1989, when 0.8 inches fell. The city's record snowfall came on Feb. 13,   
   1899, when a winter storm dumped snow to the depth of 1.9 inches on   
   Northeast Florida.   
      
   The National Weather Service also issued a Record Event Report for Alma,   
   Georgia, which recorded its highest-ever single-day snowfall of 5 inches.   
      
   — Clayton Freeman, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union   
   At least 12 deaths attributed to the storm   
      
   At least 12 people have died, seven of them in Texas. Near La Pryor, 100   
   miles west of San Antonio, five people were killed Tuesday in a crash in   
   icy conditions. Two people also have died from cold exposure in Austin,   
   officials said.   
      
   In Alabama, the Dale County Coroner's office confirmed two deaths likely   
   related to the weather - one in a car crash, the other in a house fire. And   
   in Georgia, Emergency Management Agency/Homeland Security Director Chris   
   Stallings said a "critical needs" patient went outside and died of   
   hypothermia.   
      
   A 19-year-old was killed Wednesday afternoon when his vehicle overturned   
   into the icy waters of Cross Creek in North Carolina, according to the   
   Fayetteville Police Department. Police spokesperson Rickelle Harrell said   
   the weather conditions contributed to the crash and speed was not a factor.   
   Snow in Florida's capital city a 'once-in-a-lifetime experience'   
      
   The storm brought a rare snow day to Tallahassee, shutting down practically   
   the entire city and giving people a chance to throw snowballs or sleighs   
   down a hill — some for the first time.   
      
   Local schools, universities, and state, local government agencies and   
   Tallahassee International Airport had already planned to close for the day.   
   But the sleet and snowstorm rendered Tallahassee an utter ghost town.   
   Nearly every business in town closed, at least for the first part of the   
   day, before a beaming sun began to melt some of the ice.   
      
   Outside, the usual traffic noise of honking horns and screeching tires was   
   replaced by the sound of laughter as kids and the young-hearted alike   
   played outside. The Flom sisters, Pandora, 18, and Kalliope, 15, rigged   
   cardboard boxes with exercise bands to race down a frozen hill at Lafayette   
   Park in Midtown.   
      
   "It’s hard to comprehend that this is going to be a once-in-a-lifetime   
   experience,” the older sister said as she wiped ice from her smile.   
      
   — Jeff Burlew, Douglas Soule, Ana Gon~i-Lessan, and Elena Barrera,   
   Tallahassee Democrat   
   Snow collapses old Civic Center in Mobile, Alabama   
      
   The roof of the Civic Center in Mobile, Alabama, a building that was in the   
   process of being demolished, collapsed under the weight of the snow   
   Wednesday morning, the city said in a Facebook post.   
      
   "The collapse occurred in a manner consistent with the plans for the   
      
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