Big thaw begins after enchanting winter snowstorm transformed South MS. ‘It’s historic’

The remnants of South Mississippi’s biggest snowstorm in six decades began dripping and melting on Wednesday, but will endure just long enough to freeze roads and send cars sliding again before the rare ice that enveloped and enchanted the region thaws for good.

The frigid Wednesday dawn transformed with the sun into a cascade of snow melt, dripping from rooftop icicles and falling in wet clumps from heavy branches. The snow drained toward the streets, where tires dirtied it to slush. But it stayed long enough for residents to build a few more snowmen, and hurl their last snowballs.

“Now it’s going to be a big, muddy, wet mess,” said Earl Etheridge, Jackson County’s public safety director.

The winter storm invaded on Tuesday with nine inches of snow and arctic air that dropped to 7 degrees in Gulfport, shattering the city’s last temperature record. Forecasters asked residents to be cautious even as temperatures breached freezing and roads began to clear.

Most bridges had reopened. But the National Weather Service said overnight wind chills on Wednesday would plummet close to 13 degrees. A cold weather advisory lasts until 10 a.m. Emergency managers were also warning of a new worry: black ice. Wednesday’s melt could freeze again, they said, leaving roads perilous Thursday morning.

“We’re going to be looking for that,” said Brian “Hooty” Adam, director of Hancock County’s emergency management agency. “There’s a lot of water on the streets.”

Related: Historic snowstorm is melting in South MS. But when will temperatures finally warm up?

The Mississippi Department of Transportation sent 17 snowplows to sweep South Mississippi, where snowfall totals burst past forecasts. Nine inches fell in Long Beach and Ocean Springs, according to preliminary totals from the National Weather Service, which recorded similarly striking numbers across the Coast.

The arrival of true winter in a place that rarely sees it did not cause major problems.

But annoyances kept coming: An outage briefly left more than 3,000 homes in Jackson County in the dark before Singing River Electric restored power Wednesday morning. Pascagoula issued a boil water notice because the cold caused low water levels across the city. Bay St. Louis Fire Chief Monty Strong said ice slowed trucks on the way to a house fire Wednesday morning. No one was injured. The Mississippi Highway Patrol’s local troop also responded to 50 calls, including a semi-truck that spun like a beached whale off Interstate 10.

“We’ve got 18-wheelers literally everywhere,” Trooper Landon Orozco said Wednesday morning. “It’s nuts.”

Relief could arrive by the weekend. Highs may reach the 50s on Saturday and the 60s on Sunday and Monday.

The last time it snowed this much was in December 1963, when the National Weather Service recorded 7 inches in Gulfport. Knowing if the Coast has truly broken that record could take days because the only official measurement comes from the airport and forecasters must confirm that number is accurate, said Christopher Bannan, a meteorologist at the agency.

Related: Rare winter storm dumped record-breaking snowfall on the Mississippi Coast. Or did it?

Still, it is unlikely anyone will forget the snow for a while.

Darlene Kimball, whose family has sold seafood in Pass Christian since the 1930s, closed the business for two days because she cannot get to the Harbor or even receive shipments. It has set her back a bit, but she is determined to return soon and grateful she did not have to filet fish on the frigid waterfront.

“Mother Nature will let me know when I can go back to work, I guess,” she said.

Others refused to change their habits.

“It wasn’t too bad,” said Max van Norden, co-owner of Long Beach Market & Deli, which stayed open and busy this week despite the snow. “People need to eat,” van Norden said. “If everything is closed, what do they do?”

A few brave people strolled the frozen beach Wednesday morning in Pass Christian. Children laughed, throwing snow and sliding on ice. Schools were closed, and few seemed to mind two days of no class as long as students stayed safe. “Everyone’s just really enjoying it,” said Mikayla Burns, communications director at the Pascagoula-Gautier School District. “It’s historic.”

Tammy Sambrano, a real estate broker in Pascagoula, was thrilled by the snow and took the shut down as an impromptu vacation.

“I have 20 listings,” she said. “Nobody’s called to see any of them these last two days.”

Anita Lee and Margaret Baker contributed reporting.

This story was originally published January 23, 2025 at 5:00 AM.