Snow covered the white-sand beaches of normally sunny vacation spots, including Gulf Shores, Alabama, and Pensacola Beach, Florida. The heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain hitting parts of the Deep South came as a blast of Arctic air plunged much of the Midwest and the eastern U.S. into a deep freeze.

For example, Lake Charles, La., along the Gulf Coast, showed snowfall rates of over 1 inch per hour this morning and early afternoon and visibility down to a quarter of a mile with blowing snow. This is one of the reasons why blizzard warnings were posted briefly for that region earlier.

New Orleans is forecast to get several inches of snow on Tuesday, potentially setting a record in the city known for heat and humidity. Why it matters: The region is expected to shutdown through Thursday in anticipation of icy road conditions.

The National Weather Service and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecast model are now in agreement as the chance of snow creeps to 50% in the Florida Panhandle on Tuesday.

Snow has arrived in Florida! Check out this video from I-10 near Pensacola. A Georgia fire chief stopped to help a driver who hit a deer. He was then shot and killed.