Rare blizzard hits US Gulf Coast, covers Houston and New Orleans

STORY: A once-in-a-century winter storm sweeps across the US Gulf Coast, where snow showers are rare.

The National Weather Service said 31 million people were under a blizzard warning Tuesday — from south Texas east through Georgia and north into the Carolinas and into Virginia.

The warning is valid until Wednesday morning.

Temperatures dropped well below freezing across the South.

As the storm moved east, snow-covered streets near downtown Houston were virtually deserted.

Those willing to brave the freezing temperatures enjoyed the unusual change of scenery, for now…

“Yes, the snow is beautiful, look. It’s so soft, and it’s stickier than I expected, so I think it’s amazing.”

“It’s actually really fun to have this because it’s kind of a throwback to my childhood and school days.”

The weather service said 9.8 inches of snow had accumulated by late afternoon Tuesday in New Orleans.

The service attempted to confirm whether this broke an 8 inch record set in 1895.

The storm snarled air travel with more than 1,000 flights departing or departing Houston, according to Flightaware.com.

The storm crawled through Mississippi, Georgia and Florida late Monday.

Much of the United States remains in a dangerous deep freeze.