Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs A heavy mix of snow and sleet on Friday swept across parts of the South that are not used to winter weather, prompting flight cancellations, school closures and official warnings to stay off the roads when possible.A winter storm warning stretched from eastern Oklahoma to Virginia, the National Weather Service said, and a mix of snow and freezing rain was falling in cities including Jackson, Miss.; Birmingham, Ala.; and Atlanta on Friday morning.Parts of western Arkansas had more than a foot of snow, with heavy snowfall Friday morning piling on accumulation from the previous day. From Friday into Saturday, parts of the Mid-Atlantic, the Ohio Valley and the Northeast could see between one and five inches of snow.The widespread mix of wintry precipitation led to the cancellation of more than 2,000 flights in and out of airports in Atlanta, Dallas, Nashville and Charlotte, N.C., on Friday.At Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, where nearly 60 percent of outgoing flights had been canceled or delayed, a ground stop was issued for all incoming Delta flights after an aborted takeoff led to passengers on a Delta plane being evacuated onto the snowy runway, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.The icy, snowy mix made streets and highways treacherous across a wide swath of the South. In northern parts of Mississippi, multiple crashes were reported on roads that were coated in ice and snow, causing dangerous conditions, the Emergency Management Agency said.A section of Interstate 22, a 200-mile route going through Mississippi and Alabama, was shut down because of a crash in Marshall County, in the north-central part of Mississippi.“If you’re trying to get on the roads, don’t get on them,” Gov. Brian P. Kemp of Georgia said in a news conference on Friday, warning that with temperatures remaining near the freezing mark, the mix of snow and icy rain would likely make roads hazardous through Sunday.Most of Atlanta’s shops and restaurants shuttered on Friday. The city seemed to have learned its lesson after “Snowmageddon” in 2014, when less than three inches of snow led to chaos on the roadways, leaving motorists stranded, children stuck in buses and at schools and government leaders scrambling to clean up the mess.The governor at the time, Nathan Deal, apologized for the storm response, and his emergency management chief resigned. When forecasters predicted a similar storm a few weeks later, Mr. Deal swiftly shut down the government and urged businesses to follow suit.The city and state seemed more prepared this time, with officials urging people to stay indoors and salting highways and city streets before the storm. The roads were virtually empty on Friday — save the occasional skier or sledder — as the morning’s powder melted into a gray slush around noon.One exception to the closures was Waffle House. Benji Waugh, a customer, knew the famously resilient breakfast joint would be open for business. “Living in the South, anytime there’s a hurricane or a tornado or some kind of storm, everywhere shuts down,” he said, while wolfing down a bacon, egg and cheese bowl. He added: “But it’s just easy to go to Waffle House, because they’re always open.”Governor Kemp had declared a state of emergency on Thursday in anticipation of the storm, as did his counterparts in Tennessee and Arkansas. While Tennessee is familiar with winter storms, some areas, like Memphis, could receive their largest two-day snow totals in 40 years. Parts of the state are still recovering from Hurricane Helene, which moved through the state as a tropical storm in September. Six inches of snow was reported in Memphis as of 11 a.m. Eastern, the Weather Service said.Across North Carolina, a similar scenario was expected to unfold around midday Friday and last into Saturday.Accumulations of up to two inches are currently expected in the Mid-Atlantic area east of the Allegheny Mountains. The storm is then expected to move off the coast, where it will strengthen but remain far enough away to avoid being a major hazard for the Northeast.Unusual cold across the East Coast is expected to continue into next week, allowing for some snow to stick around. And areas where the snow has melted during the day may refreeze at night, creating ongoing hazards.
