Hamilton County Schools will delay two hours on Friday.

HCDE officials said, "Due to the possibility of icing conditions overnight and to ensure the safety of our students, parents, and employees, Hamilton County Schools will be delayed two hours Friday. Child care sites will open at the regular time."

Closed Friday will be Cleveland, Bradley County, Polk County and McMinn County Schools.

Brainerd Baptist School will have a one-hour delay.

Chattanooga Christian will have a two-hour delay.

Dade County Schools and Whitfield County Schools will have a two-hour delay on Friday.

A number of area school systems dismissed early on Thursday with the chance of snow in the forecast. It wound up with no snow falling in downtown Chattanooga and a smattering on Lookout and Signal mountains.

Hamilton County schools began dismissing at 1 p.m. on Thursday starting with the first tier in anticipation of severe weather this evening.  Buses ran normal routes.  After school child care and all evening extracurricular activities were cancelled.

The Hamilton County School Board workshop at 4 p.m. and regular meeting at 5:30 p.m. today were delayed for a week.

Meanwhile, South Chickamauga Creek was above flood stage and minor flooding was occurring. At 9:15 a.m., the creek was at 19.9 feet. Flood stage is 18 feet. The best chance for snow in Chattanooga is expected in the afternoon.

The Highway 58 Transportation Enhancement Project meeting that was scheduled for today at 6 p.m. at Lakeside Academy has been cancelled. City of Chattanooga Public Works officials will reschedule the meeting in the near future once a time and location is determined.

All East Ridge city offices will open at 10 a.m. Friday due to potential freezing temperatures overnight and icy roadways. Emergency services and road clearing crews will remain on duty as needed.

Motorists are warned that the falling temperatures could make roads icy and hazardous.

AccuWeather reports snow began early Thursday morning across Mississippi and is expected to spread northeastward through Thursday, causing travel headaches from Jackson, Miss., to Greensboro, N.C., to Dover, Del.

This storm continues the trend of wintry weather across the South. The region has seen its share of frozen precipitation from ice to snow this week. While Mississippi and Alabama will be spared the brunt of this storm, locations in the southern Appalachians can be buried under a foot or more of snow.

9:10 a.m. EST Thursday: Rain continues to change to snow in Alabama.

8:25 a.m. EST Thursday: Reports coming in on Twitter that rain is changing to snow in western Alabama.

7:40 a.m. EST Thursday: Widespread reports of 2 inches of snow in Mississippi with 3 inches reported by a trained spotter at Pearl, Miss.

7:22 a.m. EST Thursday: Police report slushy bridges and overpasses with slick conditions in Lexington, Miss. Emergency management reported the same in Brookhaven, Miss. Joanne Feldman from Fox 5 in Atlanta, Ga., tweeted "Since cold air can circulate UNDERNEATH bridges & overpasses, ice develops there first."

7:00 a.m. EST Thursday: Two inches of snow reported 2 miles north of Jackson, Miss.

6:00 a.m. EST Thursday: A cold front is slicing across the Florida Panhandle with a temperature of 42 in Pensacola and 67 in Tallahassee! Temperatures will fall from these readings in Tallahassee and only climb a few degrees in Pensacola through the day.

4:30 a.m. EST Thursday: Wind is kicking up along the Gulf Coast this morning and will continue to whip throughout the day. Currently a raw 40 degrees in New Orleans with a wind chill of 35.

3:45 a.m. EST Thursday: An inch of snow has been reported in both Vicksburg and Jackson, Miss., with several accidents on I-20 near Jackson.

3:30 a.m. EST Thursday: The very chilly temperatures to the west of the storm highlight the potent Canadian air mass in place. Houston, Texas, was 31 degrees at 3 a.m. while Detroit, Mich., was 35.