2018 — Jan 17, Winter Storm, Snow, Deep Freeze, deaths in GA LA NC TN TX VA WV-15

–>15  AP. “South cleans up after unusually intense storm that killed 15.” 1-18-2018.

—  15  Blanchard tally of State and local breakouts below.

 

Georgia                      (2)

–2  I-75 southeast of Atlanta. Driver lost control of vehicle, struck and killed two people.[1]

 

Louisiana                   (4)

–>4  CBS/AP. “Death toll mounting from winter storm deep freeze in South.” 1-18-2018.

–1  Metairie. Car slides on ice into Metarie canal; 8-month-old baby.[2]

–1  New Orleans I-10,. Pickup spun out of control knocking man off elevated road.

–1  Pointe Coupee Parish. Wheelchair-bound elderly man in house with no heat.

–1  Firefighter struck by vehicle while investigating a crash.

 

North Carolina          (1)

–1  Washington County, Jan 18. Minivan overturned, went off icy/snowy road into canal.[3]

 

Tennessee                   (1)

–1  Memphis. Apparent exposure/hypothermia; woman found dead in snowy park, 10° temp.[4]

 

Texas                          (5)

–1  Dallas. Exposure/hypothermia; homeless man found dead on sidewalk.[5]

–1  Dallas. Exposure/hypothermia; woman found dead at bus stop; wheelchair nearby.[6]

–1  Dreamland, Jan 17. Exposure/hypothermia; female, 82, with dementia; walked away from home.[7]

–1  Houston area. Homeless man found dead behind trash bin; apparent exposure/hypothermia.[8]

–1  Locality not noted. Exposure/hypothermia. Female in 80s after wandering away from home.[9]

 

Virginia                      (1)

–1  Axton area, Henry County, Jan 18. Boy, 6 sledding down driveway into road hit by truck.[10]

 

West Virginia            (1)

–1  I-64. Young college student killed when his vehicle hit “an iced-up tractor-trailer.”[11]

 

Narrative Information

 

Jan 18, CBS/AP: “Durham, N.C. — Several Southern states will be dealing with the lingering effects of a slow-moving winter storm that dumped a half-foot of snow on North Carolina’s largest cities, dusted the Deep South and killed at least 10 people…. By late Wednesday afternoon [Jan 17], Winston-Salem, Greensboro and Durham each had more than 6 inches, while some places saw as much as 10 inches.” (CBS/AP. “Death toll mounting from winter storm deep freeze in South.” 1-18-2018.)

 

Jan 18, AP: Durham, N.C. — Southerners shoveled, scraped and plowed their way Thursday out of a snowy deep freeze that caused a standstill across much of a region accustomed to mild winters. At least 15 people died, including a baby in a car that slid off an icy street outside New Orleans, and a 6-year-old boy who sledded onto a roadway in Virginia.

 

“Authorities across the South urged drivers to stay off treacherous roads. Louisiana highways remained closed much of the day and New Orleans residents were avoiding showers to restore pressure to a system plagued by frozen pipes. Atlanta was slowly returning to normal after being frozen in its tracks by about an inch of snow….

 

“North Carolina is accustomed to getting some snow, but people were surprised at the ferocity of this storm, which dumped as much as an inch per hour from the mountains to the coast and piled a foot of snow (30 centimeters) in parts of Durham County….

 

“On Thursday [18th], airlines canceled another 200 flights at Atlanta’s airport, and dozens of other flights at airports in Charlotte and Raleigh.

 

“Schools remained closed or had delayed openings across much of the region…

 

“Louisiana was also struggling to dig out. Every interstate in Baton Rouge remained closed Thursday morning, including Interstates 10 and 12, which were blocked to motorists across the southeastern stretch of the state. By mid-afternoon, many of the roadways had opened, though bottlenecks remained.

 

“Most of the fatalities happened in traffic accidents, including a man knocked off an icy elevated interstate in New Orleans, a West Virginia college student who slammed into an iced-up tractor-trailer and someone in a minivan that slid into a canal in North Carolina.

 

Others were believed to have died of exposure to bitterly cold weather in Louisiana, Texas and Tennessee….” (Associated Press/Jonathan Drew and Tom Foreman Jr. “South cleans up after unusually intense storm that killed 15.” News & Observer, Raleigh, NC 1-18-2018.)

Sources

 

ABC 13 Eyewitness News, Houston (Kevin Quinn). “83-year-old woman with dementia likely died from cold.” 1-17-2018. Accessed 1-19-2018 at: http://abc13.com/83-year-old-woman-with-dementia-likely-died-from-cold/2958888/

 

Associated Press (Jonathan Drew and Tom Foreman Jr.). “South cleans up after unusually intense storm that killed 15.” News & Observer, Raleigh, NC 1-18-2018. Accessed 1-19-2018 at: http://www.newsobserver.com/news/weather/article195270369.html

 

CBS/AP. “Death toll climbs to 15 as the Deep South cleans up snow.” 1-18-2018. Accessed 1-19-2018 at: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/death-toll-climbs-to-15-as-the-deep-south-cleans-up-snow/

 

CBS/AP. “Death toll mounting from winter storm deep freeze in South.” 1-18-2018. Accessed 1-18-2018 at: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/death-toll-mounting-from-winter-storm-deep-freeze-in-south/

 

The Tribune, Seymour IN. “The Latest: After ice, some Louisiana interstates still shut.” 1-18-2018. Accessed 1-18-2018 at: http://www.tribtown.com/2018/01/18/us-winter-weather-the-latest-8/

 

WTVR CBS 6, Richmond (Vernon Freeman Jr.). “6-year-old Virginia boy dies after being hit by car while sledding..” 1-18-2018. Accessed 1-19-2018 at: http://wtvr.com/2018/01/18/6-year-old-virginia-boy-dies-after-being-hit-by-car-while-sledding/

 

WWLTV, New Orleans, LA. “Baby dies, woman critical after car slides into Metarie canal.” 1-17-2018. Accessed 1-18-2018 at: http://www.wwltv.com/news/local/jefferson/baby-dies-woman-critical-after-car-slides-into-metairie-canal/508820143

 

 

 

 

[1] CBS/AP. “Death toll mounting from winter storm deep freeze in South.” 1-18-2018.

[2] WWLTV. “Baby dies, woman critical after car slides into Metarie canal.” 1-17-2018; identifies victim as Kollage Le-Silva. Adds: “Officials said ice on the roadway was a contributing factor to the accident.”

[3] The Tribune, Seymour IN. “The Latest: After ice, some Louisiana interstates still shut.” 1-18-2018. “…Gov. Roy Cooper calls [the accident] the state’s first reported weather-related fatality from the winter storm.”

[4] CBS/AP. “Death toll mounting from winter storm deep freeze in South.” 1-18-2018.

[5] CBS/AP. “Death toll climbs to 15 as the Deep South cleans up snow.” 1-18-2018.

[6] CBS/AP. “Death toll climbs to 15 as the Deep South cleans up snow.” 1-18-2018.

[7] ABC 13 Eyewitness News, Houston. “83-year-old woman with dementia likely died from cold.” 1-17-2018. Notes that location is in Harris County (Houston area) and identified victim as Rosella Wilson, who “was found in a wooded area less than 50 yards from the back door of her home…”

[8] CBS/AP. “Death toll mounting from winter storm deep freeze in South.” 1-18-2018.

[9] CBS/AP. “Death toll climbs to 15 as the Deep South cleans up snow.” 1-18-2018.

[10] WTVR CBS 6, Richmond (Vernon Freeman Jr.). “6-year-old Virginia boy dies after being hit by car while sledding..” 1-18-2018. Boy identified as Aaron Frias-Alvarez.

[11] AP. “South cleans up after unusually intense storm that killed 15.” News & Observer, Raleigh, NC 1-18-2018.