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A rare winter storm started sweeping through South Mississippi on Tuesday with freezing gusts that closed schools and offices, disrupted travel and covered rooftops, beaches and even wilting palm trees in several inches of thick snow.
The snow began at dawn and kept falling, leaving the cloudy Gulf Coast mostly silent except for the wind and the sound of ice hitting windows. A slick layer formed on some sidewalks and roads. Forecasters warned residents that driving would be dangerous and pleaded that people stay home.
The storm could be historic. The National Weather Service predicted 4 to 6 inches of snow could fall across the Mississippi Coast, with possibly higher totals to the west.
“Stay off the roads,” Hancock County Emergency Management Director Brian “Hooty” Adam said Sunday. “I don’t think anybody’s seen this much snow in this area. I don’t remember that much snow in my lifetime.”
Snow fell through strong winds Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, on the beach in Pass Christian.
8p.m. Check conditions before heading out
Driving conditions are expected to be slippery Wednesday morning, when most schools and many businesses will be closed. Before heading out, check the MDOT Traffic app or MDOTtraffic.com for the latest road conditions.
Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport terminal and runway are closed Tuesday until weather permits a safe reopening. Check their website for updates.
6:45 p.m. Power outages increase as snow moves out
Few power outages were reported across South Mississippi during Tuesday’s snow, but the number is increasing in Jackson County as the storm pulls away.
Mississippi Power reports 27 customers without power and Coast Electric 23. Singing River Electric’s power outage map estimated more than 400 customers may be without power in the Gautier area of Jackson County. Most of the outages are in the Seacliffe area south of U.S. 90 and the number was revised down to about 200 outages.
Another 16 outages were reported on Martin Drive in Pascagoula.
With temperatures forecast to fall into the teens Tuesday night, crews are out and working to restore power, the utility reports.
6:15 p.m. Snow’s moving away
National Weather Service in New Orleans reports the snow is winding down over Louisiana and South Mississippi after leaving totals not seen in at least 60 years.
The Winter Storm Warning is ending, but travel is “extremely discouraged” overnight. Warnings will likely be necessary again Wednesday night, the NWS says.
“While we get close to full sunshine tomorrow, it may not be enough to melt enough snow to improve travel,” the advisory said.
5:20 p.m. MDOT says stay home
Mississippi Department of Transportation advises against travel south of the U.S. 84 corridor Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, when black ice is expected, especially on bridges. Crews are working to plow and treat roads, but the the de-icing agents are ineffective at the very low temperatures expected.
Ice is reported on bridges and overpasses in 21 counties. Crews from northern Mississippi are assisting with road clearing efforts in South Mississippi, with 24 snowplows and 75 maintenance crew members deployed. On Tuesday they plowed I-10, I-110, U.S. 49, U.S. 90 and Mississippi 67.
Route 609 bridge in Jackson County and the I-110 bridge and U.S. 90 Biloxi Bay Bridge in Harrison County remain closed due to icy conditions.
5 p.m. Officially, 8.3 inches in St. Martin
The National Weather Service recorded 8.3 inches of snow at 4 p.m. in St. Martin.
The Coast’s snowfall record is 7 inches in Gulfport in December of 1963. But the number in St. Martin does not officially break that record because St. Martin does not have a long enough history of measurements to compare to, the National Weather Service said.
Meteorologists take measurements at the Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport because the site has decades of data for comparison.
Knowing if the Coast has truly broken the snowfall record could take days because the National Weather Service must confirm that automated observations at the airport are accurate, said Christopher Bannan, a meteorologist at the agency. But he said the Coast would probably near its 1963 record.
“It is gonna be close,” Bannan said.
Other high totals across the Coast so far include 6 inches at 1:47 p.m. in Waveland, 5.8 inches at 4 p.m. in the Kiln and 5.0 inches just after 1 p.m. in Biloxi.
4:25 p.m. Snow totals inch up
One measurement Tuesday afternoon in Ocean Springs recorded 7 inches of snow.
Tuesday’s highest total recorded so far by the National Weather Service is 6 inches in Waveland. If the Gulfport breaks 7 inches of snow, it would beat the previous snowfall record set there in December 1963.
The total snowfall continues to rise in Ocean Springs, where one measurement found 7 inches on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025.
4:20 p.m. Extreme cold warning
An extreme cold warning is in effect for Harrison, Hancock and Jackson counties until 9 a.m. Wednesday, with temperatures expected to drop into the teens and wind chills as low as 7 degrees.
Meteorologist Phil Grigsby said snow and ice are expected to remain on South Mississippi roadways Wednesday, when the temperature will climb only into the mid-30s.
On Wednesday, Grigsby said, “The snow and ice is not going to melt, at all.”
He expects road conditions to improve by Thursday, when temperatures will climb into the 40s.
4 p.m. Snow still relentless on MS Coast
The National Weather Service said pockets of heavier snow could fall across the Mississippi Coast soon. It predicted hourly snowfall rates could reach 1 to 1.5 inches.
3:50 p.m. Traffic problems persist
The Mississippi Highway Patrol had responded to seven car crashes as of 3:45 p.m., Trooper Landon Orozco said. None were serious and no one was hurt.
Troopers have also worked 81 cases Tuesday involving cars that needed tow trucks, disabled vehicles and other similar calls, Orozco said.
Officials have warned residents to stay off the roads Tuesday and Wednesday until the snow and ice melts.
3:20 p.m. NWS releases new snow totals
South Mississippi is nearing its all time snowfall record of 7 inches in Gulfport in December 1963.
The National Weather Service said Waveland had recorded 6 inches of snow as of 1:47 p.m.
Diamondhead recorded 4.8 inches at 2:30 p.m. Biloxi had 5 inches just after 1 p.m.
Totals from earlier Tuesday included 3 inches in Pass Christian, 5.3 inches in Gulf Park Estates and 4.2 inches in Picayune.
The National Weather Service will not know final snowfall totals until snow stops falling late Tuesday afternoon or evening. Forecasters had earlier predicted the region could get 4 to 6 inches of snow.
2:15 p.m. Six inches of snow reported
The Mississippi Coast is nearing the high end of forecast snow totals.
The National Weather Service predicted the region could get 4 to 6 inches of snow. Parts of the Coast, including Gulfport, were measuring 6 inches of snow by 2 p.m.
Forecasters said snow was slacking north of Interstate 10 but could still pick back up. The storm is not expected to clear the Coast until late Tuesday afternoon or evening.
12:50 p.m. When will the snow stop falling?
The National Weather Service said 4 to 6 inches of snow could fall across South Mississippi before the end of the day.
The snow will probably stop by late afternoon or early evening, according to the National Weather Service.
Read more about the Tuesday forecast and timing here.
Noon: 4 inches of snow recorded in Picayune
Snow was rising by noon across South Mississippi. The National Weather Service said 4 inches had fallen in Picayune.
St. Martin has recorded 2.3 inches so far, according to the National Weather Service. Gulfport has 1.5 inches. The Kiln has recorded 2.8 inches.
11:45 a.m. Heavier snow possible in afternoon
The National Weather Service said snow would keep falling all afternoon. Areas across Louisiana and South Mississippi are reporting 1 to 3 inches of snow. Forecasters warned heavier snow was possible in some areas later on Tuesday.
11 a.m. Risk of black ice increasing
Harrison County Road Manager Tim Smith, who was out Tuesday morning to check conditions, is seeing wet areas in roadways where snow is melting. Smith expects those areas to freeze up later today, creating dangerous black ice. A coating of ice on roadways can be hard to spot, so residents should avoid all travel during the snow storm.
Read more about black ice here.
10:55 a.m. Conditions deteriorate on roads and bridges
Snow and ice have closed the Biloxi Bay Bridge between Ocean Springs and Biloxi. Interstate 110 is closed south of Bayview Avenue. U.S. 90 was covered in snow, with a double line of slushy tire tracks in the north and south bound lanes as a few motorists braved the snow and crept along the beach highway.
See the full list of road closures here.
10:15 a.m. Emergency managers share updates
Emergency managers in Hancock, Harrison and Jackson counties are monitoring snow across South Mississippi.
Hancock County Emergency Manager Brian “Hooty” Adam said his office had received no emergency calls as of about 9:30 a.m. There are five people in the county’s cold weather shelter. “Everything so far is going good,” Adam said. “People are actually staying off the road for the most part.”
As snow piled up, Harrison County Emergency Manager Matt Stratton said Tuesday morning: “The public needs to understand that almost every road in the counties and cities is affected now. People need to go to a safe location.”
In Jackson County, Emergency Manager Earl Etheridge said some bridges were closing due to ice. He said more than 0.25 inches of snow had fallen by 10 a.m. and that there were minor traffic accidents “all over the place.” People were running off the road and sliding into medians, he said.
10 a.m. Flights canceled at Gulfport-Biloxi
The Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport said it was monitoring winter weather impacts to the region. It said most airlines had canceled flights Tuesday but planned to resume running Wednesday.
The airport asked passengers to check directly with airlines for the most up to date information.
9:45 a.m. Grocery stores and businesses close
Some grocery stores on the Coast are closed Tuesday and others will close by noon. All schools and government offices are closed, and the Coast Transit Authority is not running buses.
See a full list of closures across the region here.
9:15 a.m. Scattered power outages reported
A few power outages were reported Tuesday morning. Mississippi Power reported one outage, Coast Electric reported 26 outages across Hancock and Harrison counties, and Singing River Electric reported several outages in Jackson County.
Read more about power outages here.
9:10 a.m. Children enjoy first snow of their lifetimes
Mike Johnson was shoveling snow in front of his home in Gautier on Tuesday while his grandchildren played in the winter weather.
“The kids are enjoying it,” Johnson said. “It’s not something we welcome. But hey, we’ll take advantage of the first experience with them.”
Joshua Larson, a student at Singing River Academy, was riding his scooter through the streets nearby. He planned to stay out all day.
“It’s really fun,” said Larson, 11. “I’ve never experienced it,” he added. “It’s my first time.”
Johnson was in good spirits but hoped the snow would stop falling soon. “We don’t need to be crippled in South Mississippi,” he said. “We don’t know how to handle it.”
Joshua Larson, 11, rode his scooter Tuesday morning through the snowy streets of Gautier. “It’s really fun,” he said. “I’ve never experienced it.”
9 a.m. More bridges close
Biloxi announced the closure of I-110, which closed at Bayview, and the Biloxi Bay Bridge.
See a full list of road and bridge closures here.
8:30 a.m. See photos of snowfall
Photos of rare snow in South Mississippi are rolling in. See images from across the region here.
Snow started falling in Pass Christian around dawn on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. The National Weather Service predicted the Mississippi Coast could get up to 4 inches of snow in the historic winter storm.
8 a.m. Bridges close
The Popp’s Ferry bridge closed early Tuesday because of ice, the city of Biloxi said in a text alert. The Cedar Lake bridge is also closed. “Take alternate route,” the alert said. “Be cautious on roadways.”
The Bayou Portage Bridge in western Harrison County also is closed.
See the full list of bridge and road closures in South Mississippi here.
7:45 a.m. Snow begins falling
The storm came from the west and sleet began falling in Pass Christian before dawn on Tuesday. It soon turned to snow and moved east, coating Gulfport and Biloxi and moving into Jackson County.
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