Over 1,600 flights canceled as winter weather sweeps South

A mix of harsh winter weather conditions cascading through the South on Tuesday is causing thousands of flight delays and cancellations. 

More than 1,600 flights in, out of, and across the U.S. have been canceled as of 2 p.m. ET, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. Another 2,900 are delayed, according to FlightAware data.

The winter storm began Monday, bringing freezing temperatures and wintry precipitation to Texas and nearby states. Overall, nearly 7,500 flights were disrupted on Monday. 

WINTER WEATHER LEADS TO SCRUBBED FLIGHTS IN TEXAS, BEYOND

As the bad weather continued, the Dallas Love Airport and the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport each canceled 44% of their flights by 12:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, according to FlightAware. Airports in Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; and Denver also canceled a slew of flights, according to the data.

Dallas Love issued a temporary ground stop for all incoming flights early Tuesday morning due to the weather conditions. Although the ground stop has been lifted, the airport is still encouraging travelers to stay home if possible. 

The Dallas Fort Worth International Airport is also reminding customers to check with their airline before heading out and to “approach the entrance plazas cautiously when driving into or out of the airport.” 

SOUTHWEST PROJECTS MORE LOSSES AHEAD DUE TO OPERATIONAL MELTDOWN

Several rounds of sleet and freezing rain is expected through Wednesday across Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Tennessee, according to National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist Marc Chenard. 

“We’re expecting ice accumulations potentially a quarter inch or higher as far south as Austin, Texas, up to Dallas over to Little Rock, Arkansas, towards Memphis, Tennessee, and even getting close to Nashville, Tennessee,” according to Chenard.

The National Weather Service’s Fort Worth office tweeted that “major travel impacts” are likely through Wednesday and that the winter storm warning was extended through 6 a.m. Thursday. 

“When will it get better? Wednesday afternoon for some and very likely by Thursday for all,” the NWS Fort Worth tweeted. 

The NWS office in Norman, Oklahoma, warned residents to be cautious if they decide to travel. 

“Given the scattered nature of precipitation, road conditions may change rapidly over small areas,” the NWS in Norman tweeted. 

Meanwhile, officials in Little Rock, Arkansas; said residents should be prepared to stay home for 24 hours “as travel may be impossible” by Tuesday afternoon and throughout the night. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.