Winter Mess Hits Louisville Area; Floyd County Declares Emergency

Update 6:40 p.m.: A RecordSo far, 2.3 inches of snow fell in Louisville on Friday, the National Weather Service said. The weather service said the snowfallbreaks the previous record for this date—1.9 inches set in 1977.Update: 4:30 p.m.: State Transportation Asks for Patience; State of Emergency Declared in Floyd CountyTraffic is a mess throughout the Louisville region.Floyd County has declared a state of emergency and is urging people to stay off the roads because of the poor driving conditions, said a Floyd County EMA official.To the south, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said traffic is moving slowly on state highways throughout the region. In a statement, officials urged patience: With the exception of Franklin County, all counties in District 5 are reporting partly to mostly snow covered roads. ... Snow continues to fall throughout the region and road crews are salting and plowing. Traffic is moving very slowly and that delays our trucks getting their routes covered. We ask for patience from everyone. State and contract crews will be working throughout the evening to clear highways. State forces will have another shift change at midnight. Contract crews will be utilized if necessary depending upon road and weather conditions at that time.The Winter Storm Warning issued for Louisville and surrounding areas is now ineffect until 7 a.m.As the graphic below notes, southern Indiana will bear the brunt of the snowfall. Update 2:45 p.m.: UofL, JCTC Close EarlyThe University of Louisville is closing at 3 p.m. because of the winter weather—all classes an offices will be closed.Jefferson Community and Technical College closed up at 2 p.m.Update 1 p.m.: The LatestRain has given way to sleet and freezing rain Friday afternoon in Louisville and the surround area, the National Weather Service said.The weather service forecasts that the precipitation will become all snow sometime between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. Here's a map the weather service issued at 12:15 p.m. showing expected precipitation totals:

Update 9 a.m.: Parts of the Louisville area may get about four inches of snow and sleet on Friday as a storm passes through and temperatures drop, the National Weather Service said.Many schools in and around Louisville are closed. (See below.) Sleet and possibly a mix of freezing rain, snow and plain old rain are expected in Louisville before 3 p.m., the weather service said. After that, sleet and snow, which could be heavy at times.Snow are freezing drizzle are likely Friday night, the weather service said.Snow is again in the forecast for Sunday.Update 7:15 a.m.: A Few Other Closing, and What to ExpectThe Christian Academy campusesin Louisville and Southern Indiana are closed. As a commentor notes, Louisville Collegiate School is open.So what are we looking at for weather?As of 7 a.m., the Louisville area is expected to get a mix of sleet, freezing rain and rain into Friday afternoon, the National Weather Service said. After that, all snow, which could fall heavily at times.Here's what the weather service expects at about 7:30 Friday morning:

The weather service adds adds: "Total daytime ice accumulation of 0.1 to 0.2 of an inch possible. Total daytime snow and sleet accumulation of around 4 inches."Snow and freezing drizzle are expected Friday night, the weather service said.Louisville Metro and state road crews are salting roads in Jefferson County this morning. The state transportation cabinet is urging motorists to be cautious as temperatures drop.Update 8 a.m.: A NWS UpdateA new "what to expect" map from the National Weather Service in Louisville.In summary: freezing rain for a big part of the Louisville area.

Earlier: Jefferson County Public Schools and several other school districts in the region are closed Friday because of an expected mess of winter weather.Oldham County Schools, Louisville Archdiocese schools in Jefferson County,Bullitt County Public Schools and Shelby County Public Schools in Kentucky are closed, too. In Southern Indiana, Greater Clark County Schools,New Albany-Floyd County schools, Clarksville Community Schools and West Clark Community schools are closed. Also, IU Southeast andIvy Tech Sellersburghave called off classes.The University of Louisville is open and so is Jefferson Community & Technical College except for the Bullitt County campus. The Bullitt campus is closed.More info to come.