ATLANTA (Reuters) - Residents in several Southern U.S. states woke up on Saturday to snow and freezing rain as a rare winter storm swept through the region, snarling traffic, canceling flights and complicating preparations for Sunday's Super Bowl game.

 The storm, part of an unusual but nasty patch of winter weather blanketing much of the Deep South, dumped up to a foot and a half of snow in Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee and coated northern Georgia with freezing rain.

 Several weather-related deaths were reported.

 "We've been seeing a lot of traffic accidents through the morning hours," said Ken Davis, public information officer with the Georgia Emergency Management Agency in Atlanta.

 "We're telling people not to travel if they don't have to and folks are beginning to heed our warnings to stay home."

 The storm touched down as thousands of fans prepared to gather in Atlanta's Georgia Dome to watch the St. Louis Rams and Tennessee Titans play for the National Football League championship on Sunday.

 Although officials in Atlanta have expressed confidence there would not be any major disruptions for fans arriving at Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport, at least one major airline was not taking any chances.

Georgia Power, a subsidiary of Southern Co. (NYSE:SO - news) and one of two major power companies in northern Georgia, put more than 4,000 workers on active duty this weekend. The company provides electricity to about 1.8 million residents in the greater Atlanta region.

 The company said it had relocated hundreds of workers throughout Georgia to cope with potential problems.