NEW ORLEANS – A major winter storm brought blizzard conditions to Louisiana on Tuesday, turning New Orleans into a snow town. The record-breaking snowstorm blanketed palm trees in fresh flakes and halted the normally bustling Big Easy.The powerful and deadly winter storm swept across the South on Tuesday, dumping heavy snow across areas that rarely see flakes or bitterly cold conditions. The storm prompted the National Weather Service to issue the first-ever Blizzard Warning for southwest Louisiana and southeast Texas.New Orleans shattered its one-day snow total record by noon when Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport recorded 8 inches of snow. The new record breaks the Dec. 31, 1963 record of 2.7 inches.As the winter storm arrived, FOX Weather Correspondent Brandy Campbell captured the time-lapse above of the first flakes falling in New Orleans.By morning, a layer of powder covered Canal Street and the Central Business District, turning New Orleans into a snow panorama.North of downtown in Mid-City, 9.5 inches of snow was recorded, according to the National Weather Service. DEADLY 1,500-MILE PARALYZING WINTER STORM PUTS NEW ORLEANS, FLORIDA ON RARE ALERTLouisiana Department of Transportation crews were attempting to keep up with the rare snowstorm unfolding across the Bayou State. The scene along Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans on Tuesday was surreal. Palm trees swayed in the wind amid falling snow and near-blizzard conditions, with wind gusts exceeding 45 mph. The Department of Transportation shut down the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway Bridge early in the afternoon because of the weather. FOX Weather Storm Specialist Mike Seidel recorded 4 inches of snow in Baton Rouge before noon.Parts of Interstate 10 remain closed due to the snowstorm. Louisiana DOT cameras showed snow blanketing the major interstate near New Orleans.Mayor-President of Baton Rouge Sid Edwards said it could take more than 48 hours for some roads to reopen.”A lot of folks, of course, are not accustomed to driving in these conditions and they’re running off the road. And we’re having to send, you know, personnel out to get them to pick them up,” Edwards said.Officials are asking residents to stay home and enjoy the snow safely, instead of putting themselves and first responders at risk.”Please stay home and build your snowmen and do your snow angels. We have no problem with that. But we’re pleading with our citizens to stay off of the roads because we have several rescue operations out here. Again, we’re not really equipped. We don’t have a ton of snow plows in south Louisiana,” Edwards said. A Winter Storm Warning remains in effect for New Orleans through Tuesday evening. Between 3 and 7 inches of snow is forecast through Wednesday.