Snow was complicating life for some travelers as airlines canceled hundreds of flights, while snow was predicted for Washington, D.C., and travel authorities warned of potentially dangerous roads, according to AP. The National Weather Service said the storm could bring more than 5 inches (12.5 centimeters) of snow to the Washington region Sunday. Meteorologist Stephen Konarik said the storm could hit the area Sunday morning and end Sunday night or early Monday, with the peak snowfall Sunday afternoon and early evening. Brian Korty at the National Weather Service in Camp Springs, Maryland, said travelers in the northern Mid-Atlantic region and northeastern New England states may want to rethink Sunday travel plans. «They may see nearly impossible conditions to travel in,» he said. «It would be a lot better for them to travel today than it would be tomorrow.» The snow storm blanketed sections of the Midwest and hampered motorists there, before dipping south late Friday. Winter weather advisories were in effect Saturday morning from Arkansas to the Carolinas and from West Virginia to central Alabama. Much of North Carolina was under a winter storm warning. The wintry weather is the result of a low pressure system moving along the Gulf coast. It is expected to intensify and move northeast on Sunday to the mid-Atlantic states and New England. The weather service was forecasting possible snow for the New York and Boston areas, starting Sunday and continuing into Sunday night, with overnight temperatures in the 20s Fahrenheit (-6 to -2 Celsius) and wind gusts up to 30 mph (50 kph). Delta Air Lines spokesman Kent Landers said 500 weather-related flight cancellations were planned for Saturday nationwide. That included 300 of the 800 scheduled departures from the Atlanta hub. The airline was monitoring the storm's path, Landers said, and would decide on possible additional Sunday cancellations as the time approaches. Landers said the airline is encouraging customers to consider changing flight plans as a result of the snow. Anyone with travel plans through Boston, New York, Baltimore, Washington and Newark, New Jersey, on Sunday or Monday can change their flight without a penalty as long as they travel by Dec. 29. AirTran spokeswoman Judy Graham-Weaver said Saturday that the carrier had canceled seven Saturday flights and that afternoon flights from Atlanta would be delayed because of required de-icing of planes. AirTran too offered to waive ticket-change fees for some flights scheduled for this weekend and Monday in the South and Mid-Atlantic. The Nashville area had an inch (2.5 centimeters) or so of snow overnight, and roads appeared to be clear. There was also snow in northern Alabama and Georgia. By Saturday morning, 4 to 5 inches (10 to 12.5 centimeters) of snow had fallen over several hours in Bowling Green, Kentucky, according to the Weather Service. Louisville had about an inch (2.5 centimeters). In parts of Tennessee, Georgia and the Carolinas, the snow was likely to be mixed with sleet and rain before turning entirely to snow. «If roads aren't able to dry up during the day, that's what will freeze up Saturday night into Sunday morning,» said the weather service's Vaughn Smith in Atlanta. In Minnesota, the storm brought 6 inches (15 centimeters) of snow Friday to Minneapolis and St. Paul. It pushed the monthly total there to 33.4 inches (84.84 centimeters), topping the previous December record set in 1969. The snow made traveling tough Friday in northeastern Iowa, where the bulk of the storm hovered. Cedar Rapids received more than 7 inches (18 centimeters) of snow. Travelers could see airport screeners taking a closer look at empty insulated beverage containers like thermoses because air carriers were alerted about a potential terror tactic involving them, an administration official said. The Air Transport Association was expecting 44.3 million people on U.S. flights between Dec. 16 and Jan. 5 _ up 3 percent over the same period a year ago but still below pre-recession travel volume. The average ticket price was $421, up by 5 percent. The AAA predicted overall holiday travel to rise about 3 percent this year, with more than 92 million people planning to go more than 50 miles by Jan. 2. More than 90 percent said they would be driving. Said Anderson of the storm: «The timing is really bad.»
