At least 2 dead in North Carolina as storm brings heavy snow to South

At least two people have died after another winter storm brought blizzard conditions to parts of the Carolinas and prolonged cold temperatures along much of the East Coast, as tens of thousands of homes and businesses remained without power in the South on Sunday following last month’s deadly storm.

During a news conference on Sunday, North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein reported that there were more than 1,000 collisions over the weekend, which resulted in two fatalities and a major traffic jam that involved over 100 vehicles on Interstate 85. The governor did not provide additional details on the deaths, but the North Carolina State Highway Patrol said the fatal collisions happened in Robeson and Rutherford counties.

The deaths occurred amid a second major winter storm that brought heavy snow, high winds, and risks of coastal flooding from the Carolinas to Virginia, according to the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center. The storm also caused frigid temperatures to linger for much of the country as states began to recover from power outages last month.

Stein noted that all 100 counties in North Carolina experienced snow conditions, including 16 inches of snow reported in Lexington and 15 inches in Ocean Isle Beach on Saturday. State authorities advised residents to stay off the roads on Sunday as crews worked to clear the snow.

“But our fear is that with temperatures staying below freezing today and much of tomorrow, many roads will be bad in many places across the state for days to come,” Stein said. “In addition, black ice is going to remain a risk throughout the week because of below-freezing nighttime temperatures. For your own safety and for the safety of the people clearing the roads, please stay at home if you possibly can. This is no joke.”

The governor added that cold conditions, especially in western North Carolina, where wind chill temperatures could drop below zero, will further strain the electrical grid on Monday. He urged residents to conserve energy and stay warm.

This article originally appeared on USA TodayUSA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect