'It's unbelievable:' Louisiana lieutenant governor says he's never seen snow like this

AccuWeather

Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser tells AccuWeather he's encouraging Louisianians to enjoy the snow in their own neighborhoods but not to try driving in it.

Transcript

00:00Billy Nungesser is a Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana and joins us now.

00:04Thank you so much for joining us, Billy.

00:07Can you first state what kind of the response has been to a day of snow sleet and cold temperatures?

00:14It's unbelievable.

00:15The snow just continues to come down.

00:18I'm here on the North Shore across that causeway from New Orleans and about 10 inches of fall

00:25in the neighborhood where we built the snowman and I live.

00:29It's just been an incredible winter wonderland here in Louisiana.

00:35Pretty amazing.

00:36And Billy, you've been a friend to AccuWeather here for several years and I know that you've

00:40been in Louisiana for a long, long time.

00:44Have you ever seen a storm bring this much snow to your neighborhood?

00:48I've been here my whole life, never.

00:51We've had mild snow where it gets on the ground and before it lands, it disappears.

00:56But this just keeps coming since early this morning.

00:59It's still falling and it's pretty incredible to see it continue to pile up.

01:05Like I said, this neighborhood's head over 10 inches and it continues to come down.

01:11And while people are able to get out and about and enjoy the snow now, in the future there

01:18is that problem of refreezing.

01:20Do you have some concerns that you're worried about with this storm?

01:24Absolutely.

01:25We're not good at staying at home and staying inside with Mardi Gras and how we like to

01:29celebrate every weekend with fairs and festivals.

01:33And to stay locked down for two or three days, the temperature will be down in the teens

01:37tonight, so all this beautiful snow and ice is going to freeze and make it very dangerous

01:42for the next couple of days.

01:44So we need to stay locked down for the next couple of days until it's safe to drive again.

01:49And I see a lot of footprints behind you.

01:51It looks like there is a way to get out and enjoy it that doesn't involve motor vehicle

01:55transportation.

01:56A lot of footsteps, a lot of footprints.

01:58So what would you recommend for anybody in Louisiana here for the next 48 hours?

02:04You know, get out and enjoy it with your family and friends in the neighborhood as I'm doing

02:08here.

02:09But don't try to get out and drive and do things crazy because it's very difficult for

02:13law enforcement and medical emergency vehicles to get to you if you do have an accident.

02:20So stay at home, enjoy the beautiful winter wonderland here in Louisiana, something we'll

02:25never see again in our lifetime.

02:27It's pretty incredible and amazing.

02:29All right, Billy, that's great stuff.

02:31And with the cold that tears in here tonight, are we aware of any power outages or anything

02:36like that, or are we in pretty good shape in that regard right now?

02:39It's been very minimal.

02:40There have been a few and they've been restored.

02:42The energy crews have done a great job.

02:44We've seen minimal power outages throughout the New Orleans and throughout all of South

02:48Louisiana.

02:49So it's been pretty incredible that people have kept their power on.

02:54Well, that is great news.

02:56Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana Billy Nunes Gezer, thank you so much for joining us, taking

03:01some time, showing us the snowman, enjoying the snow before, of course, it gets quite

03:06dangerous outside.

03:07Thank you so much.

03:08All right.

03:09Thank you, Billy.

03:10Good to see you.

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