A new storm system is forecast to bring heavy rain, snow and severe thunderstorms to parts of the Midwest, South, and Mid-Atlantic on Thursday and Friday.
There is a risk of flooding because it comes so soon after another storm which has left the ground wet and streams running high.
The storm will move east, bringing severe weather from the upper Texas coast to Louisiana, southern Mississippi and the Alabama and Florida panhandles on Thursday night.
Harsh conditions: A motorist checks his phone after sliding off the road in the snow in Charlotte, North Carolina this week
The storm will move east, bringing severe weather from the upper Texas coast to Louisiana, southern Mississippi and the Alabama and Florida panhandles on Thursday night
Forecasters are warning of ‘strong damaging wind gusts’ of up to 80mph and ‘isolated tornadoes’ combined with heavy downpours which will slow motorists.
‘This storm is likely to pull cold air down from aloft as it moves by,’ said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Bernie Rayno.
‘If this action is strong enough and occurs fast enough, rain may change over to wet snow on the tail end of the storm on its western and northern flank,’ he added.
Mr Rayno said the US may see ‘wet snow at the tail end as far to the east as central and southern Arkansas, northern Louisiana and part of northern Mississippi by Saturday morning.’
Drivers pass an abandoned car along Silas Creek Parkway in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on Tuesday. Officials warned that temperatures in many areas plunged below freezing again Tuesday night, refreezing the melting snow
A driver slowly passes plows clearing Silas Creek Parkway in Winston-Salem on Tuesday. Much of the state remains under a winter weather advisory through late Wednesday morning
Forecasters are warning of ‘strong damaging wind gusts’ of up to 80mph and ‘isolated tornadoes’ combined with heavy downpours which will slow motorists
The US may see ‘wet snow at the tail end as far to the east as central and southern Arkansas, northern Louisiana and part of northern Mississippi by Saturday morning’
Forecasters advised people to make sure their Christmas decorations don’t blow away amid a risk of minor property damage.
It comes after a wintry snowstorm walloped several states this week, causing drivers in parts of the South to face dangerous road conditions and black ice.
While sunny skies helped North Carolina thaw on Tuesday, temperatures dropped again overnight, putting a winter weather advisory in effect for western parts of the state through late Wednesday morning.
Meanwhile, the grim search continued on Wednesday for a missing truck driver whose tractor-trailer plunged into the Neuse River in eastern North Carolina, near Kinston.
A car travels down a snow covered street in a neighborhood in Greensboro, North Carolina on Tuesday
A weather satellite view of the South is seen at 11.40am on Wednesday. A new storm threatens to bring heavy rains
Temperatures dropped again overnight, putting a winter weather advisory in effect for western parts of the state through late Wednesday morning. The map above shows North Carolina counties under an advisory on Wednesday
At around 4am on Sunday, the truck driven by a postal service contractor broke through a bridge guard rail on westbound U.S. 70 and went into the river.
Dive crews were able to reach the cab of the truck on Sunday, but did not find a body. North Carolina Department of Transportation officials used a large boat to help engineers inspect the bridge.
On Monday, as the storm passed, crews were able to remove the truck from the river and reopen the highway to drivers.
Searchers using sonar and diving equipment have continued to search the river.
A truck driven by a postal service contractor broke through a bridge guard rail on westbound U.S. 70 and went into the Neuse River on Sunday. The truck is seen being recovered on Monday and the driver is still missing
Rescue crews have searched the river near Kinston, North Carolina for several days but have not found the trucker’s body
Searchers using sonar-equipped boats and diving gear are seen searching the Neuse River for the trucker
A new storm system is forecast to bring heavy rain and strong to severe thunderstorms on Thursday and Friday. The map above shows predicted precipitation through Monday morning in North Carolina
In addition to the missing trucker, the storm is blamed for at least three deaths in North Carolina and one in Tennessee.
The snow blanketed much of North Carolina with snow, and some areas saw accumulations of more than two feet – as much snow in a day as those areas usually get in a year.
North Carolina’s Highway Patrol had responded to 2,300 crashes as of Tuesday.
Governor Cooper also warned runoff from snowmelt could combine with an expected rainstorm this week to increase the flooding threat along some rivers.