Sevierville Primary School students load up as school is let out early due to snow in Sevierville, Tenn., on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2014.KNOXVILLE - Snowfall across East Tennessee led several school districts to call off classes early Tuesday, but slippery roads complicated getting the students home.
Media reported several districts sent students home late Tuesday morning as the snow began to fall. By early Tuesday evening, districts were starting to cancel classes for Wednesday.
Buses in Sevier County were having trouble as road conditions worsened, and some turned around and carried students back to school. Sevier County Assistant Superintendent Debra Cline said for children whose parents were unable to pick them up, the district was using four-wheel-drive vehicles from various agencies to get the students home.
All the affected children had made it home by Tuesday afternoon, according to media reports.
In Knox County, several buses had trouble, sliding off roads, and one collided with a car. Dispatchers said no one was hurt.
Knox County Schools Superintendent Jim McIntyre said the district decided to close schools as soon as they could.
"When I went to bed last night, after watching the late news, it wasn't forecasted," he said during a news conference Tuesday.
Several flights to and from McGhee Tyson Airport in Knoxville were canceled Tuesday. Closure of the federal courthouse in Knoxville because of snow forced postponement of a sentencing hearing for an 83-year-old nun and two other peace activists convicted last year of sabotage after breaking into the nuclear weapons plant in Oak Ridge.
Chattanooga Public Works Director Lee Norris said the snowfall was unexpected but that the department had brined some area bridges Monday night. He said having parents and buses using gridlocked streets to get children home made it more difficult to clear the roads but that crews would do what was necessary to finish.
Volkswagen Chattanooga said it was canceling production on Tuesday's second shift and Wednesday's first shift because of supply chain issues caused by bad weather in the Southeast.
The National Weather Service in Morristown says between 1 and 4 inches of accumulation was expected in the region by midnight with overnight lows approaching zero. The forecast calls for 1 to 2 inches across most of the valley locations and mountain foothills and higher amounts in higher elevations.
The weather service warns that driving conditions may become hazardous and motorists should use caution when traveling.