The first major 2026 winter storm in the South brought a wintry mix including freezing rain to the Tennessee Valley causing icy conditions and dangerous roadways.
The storm arrived early Saturday, bringing sleet and some snow to the area. It continued into the later parts of the day with freezing rain. The National Weather Service issued multiple winter weather alerts before the storm encouraging people to stay home.
Chattanooga resident Breanna Taylor was not happy after she spent a lot of money on groceries.
“Families are upset that they spent over $200 on groceries, and it didn’t snow,” Taylor said.
The bulk of the storm arrived on Sunday bringing mostly rain with temperatures in the low 40’s. With temperatures dropping below freezing on Sunday night, the National Weather Service issued a severe weather advisory for southern Tennessee Monday due to the risk of wet road spots freezing. Rain froze on trees, sidewalks, and roads.
North of Chattanooga in the middle part of the state, ice was a major problem. More than 200,000 residents from Middle Tennessee lost power in their homes.
South and east of Memphis, freezing rain collected on power lines and trees, causing widespread outages and blocked roads. Statewide, three people died, according to the Tennessee Department of Health.
With icy roads, Josh Martin figured he and his wife, Misti, were “locked in” for a while at their home on a steep hill in Columbia, Tennessee.
“Getting in and out of the neighborhood is not an option,” Martin said. “I can get down because gravity will take me, but I could not get back up.”
Many Chattanooga businesses closed on Monday despite the few icy roads in the city.
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga sophomore Caden Ausbrooks said the roads were not as bad as advertised.
“I drove on Interstate 75 Sunday and the roads did not seem to be that icy as some people have said, but everyone should still be careful,” Ausbrooks said.
The roadways were icy enough for UTC, Hamilton County Schools and Chattanooga area private and charter schools to cancel classes on Monday.
UTC Senior and student teacher for Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy, Audrey Glass, is grateful UTC canceled classes, but she believes the university could have opened.
“I am very grateful for classes being cancelled, but I do believe that we could have had class in these conditions,” Glass said.
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