The US is covered in heavy snow during a busy travel weekend

Snowfall on Gaylord, Michigan, set a new single day record of 21 inches (63 centimeters) over the Upper Peninsula

The National Weather Service warned that travel will be difficult in areas where multiple feet of snow could accumulate very quickly.

While parts of the country will see a not-so-wintery wonderland, rain and thunderstorms will fall in southern Texas and Florida. The rest of the nation is expected to be dry with normal or above-normal temperatures this time of year.

Flights into and out of Erie International Airport were canceled Friday and its operating status was listed as “closed” as of 4:56 p.m. ET until 12 p.m. ET Saturday, according to the Federal Aviation Authority’s (FAA) National Airspace System. There are more than 2,300 flights that are delayed in the United States on Friday.

The agency said that if you must drive due to ice and snow, pack an emergency kit, drive slowly, and leave extra space between vehicles.

The temperature in the south is expected to fall below freezing in the morning as it extends from the Atlantic coast in the southeast to the Gulf Coast. Crops and other sensitive vegetation can be killed by the sub-freezing temperatures, warns the NWS.

The National Weather Service said on Friday that the “most cold air since last winter will be felt in the eastern part of the country.” The air mass from the tropics will stay in the U.S. this weekend and the north will see some frigid temperatures.

Meanwhile steady winds that trained snow bands Friday on Gaylord, Michigan, dumped 24.8 inches (63 centimeters), setting a new single-day record for the city, which sits in a region dotted by ski resorts, said Keith Berger, a meteorologist with the weather service’s Gaylord office. The previous record of 17.0 inches (43 centimeters) was from March 9, 1942.

Chapman said continued lake-effect snow could add more than a foot (30.5 centimeters) over the eastern Upper Peninsula through Monday morning, with 6 to 10 inches (15 to 25 centimeters) or higher to to the west.

There were state of emergency declarations in New York and Pennsylvania due to the heavy precipitation, with officials warning of the dangers for Thanksgiving travelers.

Part of I-90 in Pennsylvania was closed, as were westbound lanes of the New York Thruway heading toward Pennsylvania. Nearly 2 feet (61 centimeters) of snow fell in parts of New York, Ohio and Michigan, and 29 inches (73 centimeters) was recorded in Pennsylvania’s northwestern tip.

The city of Erie, Pennsylvania, said travel was being limited to emergency responders and essential employees and cases of medical emergency until further notice due. Vehicles getting stuck and blocking intersection and streets due to the snow and slippery conditions were some of the things people were urged to shelter in place for.

With roads in some parts impassable in northwestern Pennsylvania, scores of people took refuge overnight in the lobby and hallways of a fully booked Holiday Inn near I-90. Hotel staffer Jeremiah Weatherley said dozens of people rolled in as the snow piled up, and workers opened the conference room and gave them blankets to sleep on the floor.

In Buffalo, officials with the NFL’s Bills asked people to sign up to shovel at the stadium this season, including the expected heavy snowfall ahead of Sunday night’s game against the San Francisco 49ers. The team said it would pay $20 per hour and provide food and hot drinks.

Snowfall at Treetops Resort – First Snowfall in the Upper Peninsula and Implications for Skiing and Snowmaking Machines on Ski Hill Terrain

The snow was just 27 inches on the ground northeast of Ironwood in the western part of the Upper Peninsula. There are more than 2 feet (60 cm) of falling debris in Munising.

The snowfall was good news for Treetops Resort, which features 80 acres (32 hectares) of ski hill terrain among its 2,000 acres (809 hectares), said Doug Hoeh, the resort’s director of recreation. It boosted the base that snowmaking machines will be adding to in the coming days before the resort opens for the season next weekend.

When there’s snow, it’s good for the snow hills, but it’s bad for the parking lots. We are getting close to being able to initiate skiing, and the natural snowfall definitely helps.