At least 9 dead as rare winter storm hits southern U.S.

Icy conditions caused widespread disruption in the U.S. South, grounding more than 1,200 flights at major airports as of Wednesday morning.

HOUSTON, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- A rare winter storm, known as Enzo, has swept through the southern U.S. with record-breaking snow and bitterly cold weather to typically mild regions along the Gulf Coast, claiming at least nine lives as of Wednesday morning.

New Orleans, the biggest city in coastal state Louisiana, on Tuesday experienced its heaviest snowfall since 1948, with 8 inches falling in a single day, far surpassing the previous record of 2.7 inches, according to a report from the weather.com on Wednesday.

Several other major cities, including Mobile, Alabama, and Pensacola, Florida, also reported unprecedented snow totals.

The icy conditions caused widespread disruption in the U.S. South, grounding more than 1,200 flights at major airports from Texas to Florida as of Wednesday morning.

Nearly 30 interstate highways were forced closed during the storm, which also prompted numerous school districts, government offices, and businesses to shut down. Several southern states have declared state of emergency.

Nationwide, fatalities included two likely weather-related deaths in Austin, Texas, and at least five in a car crash on icy roads in Zavala County, Texas. The southeastern state of Georgia and Wisconsin in Midwest each reported that one person succumbed to the cold outdoors during the storm, according to a CNN report.

Governors of Gulf Coast states including Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, Florida and Mississippi issued state of emergency earlier this week to address the once-in-a-generation storm.

Though the storm weakened on Wednesday, from Virginia to Florida, more than 25 million people were under winter weather alerts as of Wednesday morning. ■