Louisiana Shuts 100-Mile Stretch of I-10 as Rare Snowstorm Hits Gulf Coast

The authorities in Louisiana on Wednesday closed a 100-mile stretch of Interstate 10 that spans nearly half the state, as a powerful winter storm brought record snowfall to the Gulf Coast and triggered the state’s first-ever blizzard warning.

The announcement shortly after midnight extended an initial 50-mile closure, between Baton Rouge and Lafayette, west to the Texas border. The state’s Department of Transportation and Development said it had closed more of the highway in response to deteriorating road conditions.

Another 50-mile stretch of Interstate 10 has been closed in and around New Orleans since early Tuesday. The eight inches of snow that fell at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport on Tuesday beat a record of 2.7 inches set in 1963, according to the National Weather Service.

Interstate 10 is one of three highways that run coast-to-coast in the United States and a crucial east-west link for the southern Louisiana cities of New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Lafayette. Its span in Louisiana is just under 275 miles, and connects the state with Mississippi and Texas.