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.
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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.