A 'Catastrophic' Ice Storm Makes Its Way Across the South

The first round of freezing precipitation fell yesterday out of a monstrous storm the National Weather Service has warned is potentially "catastrophic." Now it's time for the real bad weather to begin in the South, with snapping power lines, traffic accidents, and thick accumulations of ice that could cover everything like flash-melted bulletproof glass.

The storm is predicted to mow over the Southern states today and tonight and then turn north to deliver more snowy grief up the Atlantic coast, with a possible 5 to 10 inches in Washington, D.C. People in its path are bracing for the worst. South Carolina has declared a civil emergency for expected power outages and hazardous road conditions. The NWS bureau responsible for Atlanta, a city just now recovering from another unusual winter storm, is stressing the danger with an urgency not far removed from the infamous Hurricane Katrina "Doomsday Statement." Here are a few excerpts from its bulletin at 9:08 p.m. Tuesday: