South Carolina Governor:  Stay Off Roads
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: On to the fight against weather and the slow moving winter storm that is leaving a trail of the white stuff stretching, as we mentioned, from Alabama north to Virginia. Just round one for a lot of folks, round two could be on the way, and Sean Callebs, that's the news for you. More snow on the way to where you are standing in Columbia, South Carolina.</s>SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rather than round one, round two, it has just been a prolonged round one for us here out in South Carolina. What we are seeing right now is pretty much what has been going on the last hour or so. The snow has been coming down not real heavily, just very steady. The wind picking up time to time. But let me show you the way the roads are here in Columbia, the capital of South Carolina. Right now, we are getting a dusting that is really over the ice that has been covering much of the road here throughout the day. Plows are out. Salt trucks are out. Sand trucks are out. They are doing what they can to try and keep the interstates, the main roads here in South Carolina as clear, as passable as possible. Now, we spoke with Governor Jim Hodges just a short while ago, and he said there have been 1,400 traffic accidents in South Carolina in the past 24 hours alone, including two fatalities, and despite their best efforts, the weather seems to be winning at this point, and they are urging people not to go out unless they absolutely have to.</s>JIM HODGES, GOVERNOR OF SOUTH CAROLINA: The biggest challenge, I think, is making sure that we keep people off the highways, because that's where our biggest problem is. It's not as much the danger of people freezing, as it is people getting out on the highways and trying to drive when they shouldn't be.</s>CALLEBS: And the big problem for us, when the snow hits the South like this, people really aren't experienced in driving in these kind of conditions. We have seen a lot of people fishtailing. There have been an inordinate number of fender-benders all throughout the South, and so if you are not used to being out in these kind of conditions, suddenly you throw yourself into them, it's very difficult, very difficult indeed. And as you mentioned, Daryn, apparently it's not going to be letting up any time soon. The governor, the people here in South Carolina hope that the conditions continue to, perhaps, improve over the next 24, 48 hours, and maybe by the weekend, some of this starts to melt and the conditions become passable, become safe. All state employees are off today, and at times, the state has had to use the National Guard to get four wheel drives out to get people where they just simply haven't been able to leave their homes to get to more accessible areas. That's the very latest from Columbia -- Daryn, now back to you.</s>KAGAN: I tell you what, Sean, you just sit there and you keep listening, because I am going to get your forecast for you.</s>CALLEBS: Okay. I'll listen. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com