The CNN Weather Brief: Forecasts for the next few days, and a weather system forecast for Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the Mississippi River Valley
Editor’s Note: A version of this article originally appeared in the weekly weather newsletter, the CNN Weather Brief, which is released every Monday. You can sign up here to receive them every week and during significant storms.
Dangerous cold will be the most widespread weather hazard over the next few days. Wind chill alerts are in effect for more than 25 states stretching continuously from the Texas Gulf Coast to the US-Canadian border. The wind chill Wednesday night could drop to minus 70 degrees in parts of Wyoming, a low reading rarely seen in the US.
A couple of cold fronts will move across central and eastern states by the end of this week, and a more active fall weather pattern is expected to continue into the weekend.
The storm will move to the Northeast and New England by the end of the week. New York City appears to have been left out of the snow once more, but Boston might get a couple of inches.
The front could cause up to 2 inches of rain for most of the area, but isolated locations could see more.
“By late Tuesday night and more exceptionally on Wednesday, the major winter storm will take shape and spread tremendous snowfall, both in coverage, rates, and amounts, across the High Plains and Upper Midwest.”
Though the storm is walloping some areas with severe weather, it’s forecast to track across drought-stricken areas, bringing much needed relief – including to the Mississippi River Valley area, where excessive rainfall is possible Wednesday.
A large winter storm system blanketed mountain areas with heavy snow in the western US before hitting the South, where the weather is expected to bring severe weather, with strong winds, hail and tornadoes.
The National Weather Service in Los Angeles said that California is still bracing for several feet of snow in the mountains with a few inches in lower elevations. The weather in the Golden State is unseasonable and comes more than two months after deadly flooding hit many areas.
The NWS in Portland states that there will be strong, potentially damaging, winds through at least 3 pm. The coast is forecast for gusts of 50 to 70 mph.
The snow is expected to be historic this week in Minneapolis, as multiple rounds through Thursday are expected to bring the amount of snow to more than 2 feet with wind gusts of 50 mph by Wednesday.
In many areas there were no better conditions on the road. Thursday is expected to be the hardest day to travel as the storm brings snow and strong winds to the Midwest.
There is a chance of tornadoes in December in the Lower Mississippi Valley and the Southeast when compared to the springtime.
The threat does, however, strengthen as the system heads east Tuesday, likely impacting a large swath of the Lower Mississippi River Valley. There is a chance of tornadoes, damaging hail and high wind gusts in areas such as Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Shreveport.
“The details regarding the areas most at risk from tornadoes will become clearer as the event approaches and smaller-scale trends become more evident,” Elliott said.
“The significant Sierra snowpack is good news but unfortunately these same storms are bringing flooding to parts of California,” DWR Director Karla Nemeth said in a press release. Extreme flooding is the greatest threat during a period of dry conditions brought on by our changing climate in California.
In the high Sierra Nevada, as much as 2 feet (0.6 meters) of snow could accumulate into early Sunday. The National Weather Service posted photos of traffic on snow-covered mountain passes with chains or four-wheelers, and warned about hazardous driving conditions.
The South Dakota Department ofTransportation warned that highways in the state could be closed due to the bad weather.
“The snowpack is about 225% of normal, so it’s more than twice what we’d be expecting this time in December,” said Mark Deutschendorf, forecaster at the National Weather Service office in Reno.
He said it looked a lot like Christmas. It stayed to everything and didn’t have a lot of wind. It is like a picture postcard.
The snow totals so far are impressive, though he noted that he is cautiously optimistic that the precipitation will contribute to the state’s dry spell.
“We’re Buried”: Snow Covering the Palisades Tahoe Ski Resort in Olympic Valley, California, during the December 1 Snowfall
“We’re Buried,” the Palisades Tahoe Ski Resort wrote on its website Sunday, sharing photos of thick snow covering the ski resort in Olympic Valley, California.
This is definitely a storm to remember. We’ve received 7.5 feet of snow since December 1. The resort received more than 35 inches of snow in just 24hours, making it the sixth largest snowfall total on record.
The National Weather Service office in Rapid City, South Dakota said that travel through the area will be almost impossible on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Air travel plans in the United States are being disrupted, as well as bus and train service, due to snow, ice, wind and frigid temperatures.
The University of Alaska and Alaska Pacific University were closed on Monday due to an influx of snow in the area.
The areas that need the rain have seen a lot of relief in the past week. Tennessee went from being in a famine to being in some kind of dry spell this week.
Damage and Destruction in the Oklahoma Town of Farmerville, Oklahoma, after a Superhigh-Energy-Wind Tornado
There was damage in the Oklahoma town of Wayne after the weather service warned of a tornado shortly after 5 a.m. Tuesday. Video footage from Oklahoma TV station KOCO showed substantial damage to a home in Wayne, which is about 45 miles (72 kilometers) south of Oklahoma City.
Another tornado in northern Louisiana traveled through the town of Farmerville was rated an EF-3, with 140 mph winds, according to NWS. At least 20 people were injured as the tornado demolished parts of residential areas, according to Farmerville Police Detective Cade Nolan.
There were six in Illinois on Tuesday, and an equal number in Arkansas on Monday. There were tornadoes reports from Louisiana, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Georgia and Mississippi.
“There’s essentially no one traveling right now,” said Justin McCallum, a manager at the Flying J truck stop at Ogallala, Nebraska. He said he got to work before the roads were closed, but likely won’t be able to get back home Tuesday. “I can see to the first poles outside the doors, but I can’t see the rest of the lot right outside. I’m pretty sure I’ll get a motel room tonight.
The South Dakota Department of Public Safety tweeted: “We are not kidding” monstrous storms are coming across the country,” a weather-induced fatality in Utah
The South Dakota Department of Public Safety tweeted Monday: “This is a ‘we are not kidding’ kind of storm.” People were urged to stock up on essentials and stay home.
“It will be a busy week while this system moves across the country,” said Marc Chenard, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s headquarters in Maryland.
In northern Utah, a tour bus crashed Monday morning as snow and frigid temperatures blanketed the region. The driver lost control of the bus after changing lanes and it flipped onto its side, according to the Highway Patrol. The Highway Patrol said 23 passengers were injured, including some seriously.
More than 1,300 U.S. flights were canceled Tuesday morning, and over 1,900 were delayed as of 11:30 a.m. ET, according to the flight tracker FlightAware. Most of the flight disruptions were at airports in Texas: Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and Dallas Love Field Airport.
The boy was found dead in a wooded area near Pecan Farms where his home was destroyed in the tornado that hit Four Forts, Louisiana.
A possible tornado blew the roof off the city’s service center — a municipal facility — and left pieces of the roof hanging from powerlines, said Trent Kelley, deputy director of Grapevine Parks and Recreation.
The city sent photos of the damage caused by the storm, including downed power lines, fallen trees, damaged buildings and a semitrailer that appeared to be thrown around a parking lot.
In Colorado, all roads were closed in the northeast quadrant of the state. The severe weather could cause problems for animals. Jim Santomaso, a northeast representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, said that extreme winds can push animals through fencing as they follow a gale.
Wintry precipitation will come in several waves across the region through Wednesday, and while there may be breaks in the active weather, roads will remain slick throughout the event as temperatures stay cold.
The monstrous storm that walloped much of the US this week has now brought nor’easter conditions as it moves across New York and New England ahead of the weekend.
In response to the massive storm system, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul warned residents of the hazardous road conditions the storm is threatening to bring as millions across in the Northeast are under winter weather alerts Friday.
“We urge everyone in the impacted regions to avoid unnecessary travel tonight and tomorrow,” Hochul said in a Thursday statement. Make sure to stay off the roads, work from home if possible, and also make sure to check in with your loved ones.
In anticipation of what will be a week of travel nightmares, United, American, Delta, Southwest and Jet Blue have issued travel waivers for dozens of airports across the country from the South to the Northeast, because in addition to snow covering roadways, low visibility could make air travel dangerous.
A cross country path has been cut off by the storm system since the beginning of the week, with different combinations of severe weather to different parts of the US.
Thousands of flights were disrupted because of the winter storm in the Southern U.S. Authorities said at least one person was killed in a car accident.
In Louisville, Kentucky, it is possible to see ice up to two tenths of an inch, and in Charleston, West Virginia, it is possible to see sleet up to an inch.
Powerful winds whirled by blizzard conditions knocked down power lines in the Upper Midwest as temperatures in some areas plummeted to near or below freezing, leaving thousands without proper heating.
Snowfall and Frozen Temperatures in Baraga, Michigan, and Syracuse, New York, During the Sunday Evening Aftertaste after a Tornado
Meanwhile in Louisiana, Yoshiko A. Smith, 30, and her 8-year-old son, Nikolus Little, were killed Tuesday when a tornado struck Caddo Parish and destroyed their home, local officials said.
Many cities and towns are still covered in thick snow despite the fact that the powerful system that brought the weather alert is no longer in the Northeast. Baraga, Michigan received 42.8 inches of snow over a 24 hour period, while New York got 34.2 inches.
As of Monday morning, about 183,000 customers were still without heat and lights, down from a peak of 1.7 million earlier in the week, according to the tracking site poweroutage.us.
State police in Vermont advised drivers to slow down after responding to a number of crashes on Friday. The roads were closed because of the storm.
The weather service said 24.64 inches of snow fell in the Vermont town of Wilmington, and more than 19 inches in Landgrove and Ludlow over the 36 hour period.
“We are watching two different weather events right now – one producing rain and snow this morning for most of the state, and the other has the potential to bring several feet of snow in the Tug Hill Plateau and areas along Lake Erie and Lake Ontario,” said Jackie Bray, the commissioner of New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services.
Buffalo will continue to see snowfall and frigid cold temperatures Monday, with a high of 23 degrees expected in the daytime and a low of 18 at night, according to the National Weather Service.
The weather service said that it was coming to an end with only light scattered snow showers expected through Saturday morning.
Places that will escape the snow, won’t escape the cold. Areas from eastern Montana through the Dakotas will experience the coldest air beginning Thursday morning. For the places, the temperatures will be 40 degrees below normal. The combination of cold and windy weather will cause the wind to chill to 50 degrees below zero.
According to the National Weather Service, temperatures will be between 25 and 35 degrees lower than average over the weekend.
Overall, most of the US is expected to see abnormally cold temperatures this week. Around 80% of the country will see temperatures below-freezing, including Hawaii and Alaska.
Even if there is no snowfall, high winds can pick up snow already on the ground, making it difficult to see.
Power outages will also be a concern for the Windy City as winds could gust as high as 50 mph on Friday. This will only exacerbate the storm’s impacts as wind chills will drop to at least 20 degrees below zero, possibly even colder.
An Extremely Large, Unprecedented Category 2 North Carolina Snow Storm Assembling a Category 2 Hurricane Traveling to the Great Lakes
“We typically get Arctic air masses that move down to the continental United States from Canada during the winter, but this one is unprecedented,” says Moore. “It gets a lot further south than these really cold air masses typically get.”
The cold temperatures combined with dangerous wind chills will create a potentially life-threatening hazard for travelers who become stranded, people who work outside, livestock and pets, according to the National Weather Service.
The storm is expected to intensify as it travels east, and become a powerful storm with a rapid change in strength within 24 hours. The storm’s pressure was forecast to match that of a Category 2 hurricane as it moved into the Great Lakes on Friday morning.
Those areas that see snow can be difficult to navigate due to the rain that falls on I-95. “You can see some runoff melting, maybe even some flooding.”
The chance of a white Christmas is up because of this storm. There was snow in some areas, and the cold temperatures kept it there.
“The probability is normally about 10% that the DC area will have at least one inch of snow on Christmas Day,” Carbin explained. “With the pattern coming together the way it is, I’d be willing to bump that up to a 30% chance and it could increase pretty substantially here in the next couple of days, depending on what scenario comes out.”
The immense frigid blast is creating hazards from the U.S.-Canadian border to the Gulf Coast, and spans the Pacific Northwest to the East Coast. More than 200 million people were under some form of a winter weather advisory or warning, which is one of the greatest extents of winter weather warnings and advisories ever.
South Dakota: Up to 4 inches of snow has already been seen in the state, but more is expected and winds are expected to reach up to 45 mph.
Snowfall has already begun in Seattle, which is under a winter storm warning Tuesday. The storm will arrive in portions of Idaho early Tuesday morning and then hit northern and central Montana in the afternoon.
A historic winter storm is subjecting roughly 60% of the U.S. population to a winter weather advisory or warning Friday, leading to thousands of canceled flights, warming shelters at capacity, and blizzard conditions on the eve of Christmas weekend.
The weather service warned that water pipes could burst. A wind chill watch is in effect for Amarillo, Texas.
“Outdoor pipes will be at risk due to well below freezing temps and windy conditions late this week,” the weather service in Fort Worth said. “Make sure to cover pipes and let faucets drip!”
The low-pressure system is forecast to move farther away into Canada, while another system quickly across the northern US into Monday, bringing snow from the northern Plains through the Midwest.
As of Tuesday morning, air travel appeared largely undisturbed by the approaching polar front, with more than 575 delays and 285 cancellations at airports across the U.S., according to the tracking site Flight Aware.
Denver, Colo. – The coldest day of the week after the New Millenium Run II. The weather service forecasts that the day will go as low as 14
People venturing outside should cover their skin, wear layers and change into dry clothing as soon as possible. But, experts say, the best prevention by far is simply to stay indoors.
Denver will go from a high of 47 on Wednesday to a low of minus 14 on Thursday morning. That would be the city’s coldest day in 32 years, according to the weather service.
There is a chance that parts of Texas will get freezing rain on Monday while the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys will get some sleet. Meanwhile, snow is expected in parts of the Central Appalachians and showers are forecast for parts of the Lower Mississippi, Tennessee and Ohio Valleys, as well as parts of the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast.
The storm is expected to reach the pressure equivalent of a Category 3 hurricane as it reaches the Great Lakes, with the weather service describing the strength of the low a “once-in-a-generation” event.
Still, strong gusty winds initially up to 60 mph accompanying the snow downwind from the Great Lakes will continue to make for extremely dangerous conditions on the road.
Governors in Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and West Virginia declared states of emergency. Governors in Indiana, Colorado and Missouri activated the National Guard.
The governor said the declaration will help ensure that essential supplies, especially propane, can be delivered for both commercial and residential needs.
State of Emergency and Weather Warnings for LaGuardia, South Dakota and the O’Hare International Airport in the Intermittent Scenario
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear also declared a state of emergency, with wind gusts expected to reach 40 to 50 mph on Friday and minus 10 to minus 26 degrees wind chills expected on Saturday. Beshear told residents to stay off the roads and to have a backup heat source.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt also declared states of emergency.
Nearly zero visibility on the roads led to many highway closures between Colorado and Wyoming Wednesday and they Wyoming Highway Patrol said it responded to nearly 800 calls for service in a 12-hour period, telling motorists to stay off the roads.
In South Dakota, the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office said that more than 100 vehicles were stuck in the snow.
Nearly 5,300 Friday flights have already been canceled as of 7:30 p.m. ET, after nearly 2,700 cancellations on Thursday, according to flight tracking site FlightAware.
A notice from the Federal Aviation Administration says that there were delays at the O’Hare International Airport on Thursday due to snow and ice.
Temperatures at the O’Hare dropped to 9 degrees Fahrenheit (-13 Celsius) around 5 p.m. local time. Snow and freezing fog were reported by the National Weather Service.
The FAA says de-icing fluid needs to be sprayed on departing aircraft at Dallas Love, Dallas-Fort Worth, Denver and Minneapolis airports.
“Flight activity at #LaGuardiaAirport may be disrupted by heavy rain and strong winds later today and Friday. Travelers, please confirm flight status with your airline before heading to the airport,” LaGuardia Airport posted on Twitter. JFK and Newark Airport had similar notices.
The transportation security administration wants passengers to arrive early at the airport for flights that are still on.
John Busch, the federal security director at Reagan National airport, told reporters that airports expect to be more busy this holiday season than they have been in the past. We’ve already seen some of our busiest days, yesterday and today and we expect maybe Friday 30th ahead of the New Year’s holiday can be also a very busy day.”
Intercity Bus Service in 12 Mid-Atlantic Cities During the Week of January 21st, 2014 from Chicago to Clear Lake, Iowa
Maria Ihekwaba, who was traveling from Chicago to Clear Lake, Iowa, with her granddaughter on Thursday morning, told CNN she was trying to depart as soon as possible.
Traveler Kari Lucas, from San Diego, told CNN she was visiting her sister and brother-in-law, but cut the trip short as she didn’t want to get caught in the impending weather.
She noted that San Diego doesn’t get these snowstorms. “So I don’t like it to be trapped in the airport for long periods of time.”
Greyhound issued a service alert on Thursday warning customers that those traveling in the Midwest over the next two days may have their trips delayed or canceled altogether.
Greyhound, the largest provider of intercity bus service, listed more than a dozen cities from West Virginia to Minnesota that are among those impacted. They include:
• Charleston, West Virginia• Chicago• Cleveland and Dallas meet. Danville, Illinois• Davenport, Iowa• Denver• Detroit• Minneapolis, St. Louis and Wichita, Kansas are all located in Kansas.
Amtrak Decisions during the December 25 Snowmass: Predictions for Cheyenne, Texas, During a Very Severe Weather Event
The severe weather has caused Amtrak to make many service and cancellation decisions from now through Sunday, December 25. Customers that were impacted should be able to take trains at similar times or on a different day.
In front of a map of the national wind chill forecasts, President Biden said this was a very serious weather alert. This is not the kind of day you remember as a kid. This is serious stuff.”
The cold front moved so quickly that the temperatures in the Rockies plunged at an even faster pace than before. On Wednesday night in Cheyenne, Wyo., the temperature dropped more than 30 degrees in just nine minutes.
Meantime, Texas’ primary electricity provider, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, told CNN it will be able to meet residents’ demand as temperatures plummet.
“The grid is ready and reliable,” said Peter Lake, chairman of the state’s Public Utility Commission, in a Wednesday news conference. “We expect to have sufficient generation to meet demand throughout this entire winter weather event.”
City officials stressed that crews were working around the clock to keep flights moving at the city’s major airports, O’Hare and Midway, both of which serve as hubs for major airlines.
“These hard-working individuals will have at their disposal more than 350 pieces of snow removal equipment, more than 400,000 gallons of liquid deicer for runways and taxiways, and more than 5,000 tons of salt,” said Andrew Velasquez, the city’s deputy aviation commissioner.
Cold Weather in Oklahoma City During the First Three Months of Winter Break: A Case Study of Pete and Wendy Carter with an Oklahoma City Snowmobile Rental Business
Oklahoma City residents are under a winter weather advisory through Wednesday with the expectation of up to two tenths of an inch of ice.
Several area shelters had added beds this week; still, many reported being at or near capacity. Instead, some people sought shelter on the city’s streetcar, which was operating Thursday after crews had worked from 4 a.m. to clear the route and platforms.
“The library is closed. Pete, who had no place to live and didn’t give his last name to KCUR, said he would probably be kicked out if he went into a parking garage. There’s not much you can do.
Lisa Carter is the owner of a snowmobile rental business in West Yellowstone. “We deal with cold like this all the time. We’re not doing anything extra because we’re used to it. We just don’t go outside.”
Hank Willemsma, a rancher near Dillon, where Thursday’s high temperature was expected to reach minus 13 degrees, said he’d be working through the cold to keep hay out for his cattle.
Night in the life: Warming up the Denver coliseum, Long Island Rail Road, and Kansas City, killing a man who died in an autopsy
Additional reporting by NPR in Washington, D.C., KCUR in Kansas City and Montana Public Radio’s John Hooks in Butte.
“Our troopers, our highway maintainers, our snowplow drivers have been up all night long,” Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon told NPR Thursday. We’ve got traffic moving again because they’ve done a good job, and we feel pretty good about it.
Anyone who is in need of a warm spot to stay can check out Denver’s warming centers. The Denver coliseum was able to accommodate 358 people on Wednesday night, which was far past their intended capacity of just225. The centers will be open through Saturday.
Online conversations about how to get people off the streets when it’s cold led to the issue of homelessness.
“As a public defender, one of the clearest indicators of societal failure was when I’d meet new clients who purposefully got arrested so they’d find some warmth on Rikers Island instead of freezing to death on the street,” Columbia University lecturer and longtime public defender Scott Hechinger wrote on Twitter Wednesday.
All modes of travel – planes, trains and automobiles – were being disrupted: There were hundreds of miles of road closures and flight cancellations were growing rapidly. The Long Beach branch of the Long Island Rail Road had to be temporarily closed due to flooding.
Mick Saunders, a Buffalo, New York, resident, said that Christmas is not happening this year because of the weather. “All family and friends agreed it’s safer this way.”
In Kentucky, three people died due to the storm, including two in vehicle crashes and the other a “housing insecure” person in Louisville, Gov. Andy Beshear said. The man’s body was found outside with no obvious signs of trauma and an autopsy would determine the cause of death, police said.
In Kansas City, one person died after losing control of their Dodge Caravan on icy roads Thursday afternoon, according to the Kansas City Police Department. Police said the Dodge slid down the embankment over the wall and ended up in the creek.
The Icy Weather Forecast for the Seattle-Tacoma Airport and Transportation Network in Light of the Brian Trzeciak Storm on Friday
According to the National Weather Service, there is one of the greatest extents of winter weather warnings and advisories ever.
Hochul called the storm a kitchen sink storm because she said it was throwing everything at them. We have had ice, flooding, snow, freezing temperatures and everything Mother nature could throw at us.
The storm was living up to the warnings for Brian Trzeciak. Buffalo’s airport, just to the north, reported zero visibility shortly after noon on Friday.
He said that his mother lives about 30 minutes away, as do my sister and family in the other direction. “We always get together for Christmas Eve and Christmas, but we’re all hunkering down in our houses until it all stops on Monday.”
Friday will bring record-low temperatures in areas from the Lower Mississippi Valley to the Tennessee and Ohio Valleys, stretching across parts of the east from the Southeast to the Central Appalachians.
The ice caused the closure of runways at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, where nearly half of flights going into and out of the airport were canceled, according to FlightAware. Further, all express services for Sound Transit, a regional transportation network in the Seattle metro area, were suspended Friday due to the icy conditions.
Multiple fatalities and deaths in vehicle pileup on the Ohio Turnpike inflamed by heavy storms and high winds, and implications for FedEx and Amazon
At least six people were reportedly killed in vehicle crashes, with at least four dead in a massive pileup on the Ohio Turnpike involving about 50 vehicles.
Meanwhile, WPLN’s Paige Pfleger reported that plunging temperatures are putting pressure on a power grid not accustomed to this cold, and that the Tennessee Valley Authority has asked local utilities to cut their electricity use. Customers in Nashville will experience 10 minute power cuts every few hours, until the power comes back on.
Scott Aaronson, vice president of security and preparedness at the Edison that getting the power restored in weather like this is a significant challenge.
“Sometimes accessing these areas can be really challenging with downed power lines, with downed trees, with very icy roads. … If the wind is over 35 mph, bucket trucks can’t be used. “And so those combination of things will limit the ability of crews to get out there and get the power back on.”
In New Jersey, heavy rains and high winds downed power lines and sent floodwaters surging as high as 9 feet along the coast. Interior locations along the Hudson River also flooded.
“So that, unfortunately, really affects anyone who’s got a connecting flight, and we’re going to see a lot of people missing connecting flights with these long delay times,” Bangs said.
Saturday’s delays and cancellations follow days of disruption as the storm swept across the country, bringing bone-chilling temperatures and whiteout conditions, with reports of a “bomb cyclone” extreme weather pattern near the Great Lakes.
The states and zip codes were listed on the service alert page. It had previously warned that “some delivery and pickup services” may be affected.”
FedEx said it had experienced “substantial disruptions” at two processing hubs, adding that “all FedEx Express locations have been impacted by severe winter weather and delays can be expected for package deliveries across the US with a delivery commitment through Monday, December 26.”
The USPS and Amazon temporarily closed some of their sites in the affected areas, as of Friday.
New York City temperatures recorded on Christmas Eve and a shortage of electricity in Texas prompted the Department of Energy to declare an emergency friday through an extended power outage
New York City recorded record cold temperatures on Christmas Eve. According to the National Weather Service, the high at Central Park on December 24 was 15 degrees, which was the second-coldest in at least 150 years.
There are a lot of storm-related deaths reported by local authorities. A man was poisoned by carbon monoxide in a home after snow blocked his furnace. In Ohio, a utility worker was electrocuted. A woman falling through river ice. A branch fell and killed a Vermont resident. There are at least six deaths in car crashes in Kentucky and Oklahoma.
A power grid operator for at least 13 states in the country’s eastern half asked customers to conserve power and set thermostats lower than usual from early Saturday to 10 a.m. on Sunday because usage was straining capacity.
PJM Interconnection serves about 65 million people in all or parts of Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky,Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia.
Meanwhile, a shortage of electricity in Texas prompted the US Department of Energy to declare an emergency Friday, allowing the state’s energy provider to exceed environmental emissions standards until energy usage drops.
The Jackson Rescue Team, National Guard, and the Erie County Sheriff’s Office: A crisis situation unfolds before your eyes – why two deaths are reported on Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Christmas Eve
The city of Jackson in Mississippi is trying to repair a large water main break due to the cold weather.
“We are grateful to the crews who are braving these frigid temperatures on this Christmas Eve night, while working to restore pressure to residents. Their sacrifice does not go unnoticed and is appreciated not only by this administration, but also by every resident who is affected,” the release stated.
National Guard troops were called in to help “rescue people that are stuck in vehicles,” and to give rides to medical workers so they could relieve colleagues who had been working at hospitals for more than a day, Poloncarz said.
Cars sliding on the icy roads and residents slipping on the sidewalks were documented in online videos in Seattle, Washington.
In order to get reimbursements for the overtime and mutual aid from other parts of the state, I will be requesting a declaration of emergency from the federal government. “We’ve deployed individuals – the utility crews have come but also making sure that we have all the vehicles we need.”
Mark Poloncarz, executive director of Erie County, said during a news conference Sunday that the rescue team was terrible. Many of New York’s weather-related fatalities were in Erie County, where some people were found dead in cars and on the street in snowbanks, he said.
“The loss of two lives in Buffalo – storm related – because people were not able to get to medical attention, is again a crisis situation that unfolds before your eyes and you realize that lifesaving ambulances and emergency medical personnel cannot get to people during a blizzard situation,” Hochul added.
• Colorado: Police in Colorado Springs, Colorado, reported two deaths related to the cold since Thursday, with one man found near a power transformer of a building possibly looking for warmth, and another in a camp in an alleyway.
Snow and cold air in Erie county, New York, during the week of December 31st, 2010, a warning from the National Weather Service
Lingering lake-effect snows blowing downwind from the Great Lakes will slowly become less intense, but the Arctic air enveloping much of the eastern half of the nation will be slow to moderate, according to the National Weather Service.
The snows and cold air that continues to blast the Great Lakes are expected to continue, but gradually become less intense.
By Christmas night into Monday, another low pressure system coming from the Pacific will deliver the next surge of moisture toward the Pacific Northwest and then into northern California, according to the Weather Service.
The entire region of Western New York experienced a series of days of intense snowstorms that dropped over 48 inches of snow and resulted in temperatures that plummeted to minus 22 degrees. The region accounted for 27 deaths from storms.
As rescue crews and hundreds of plow drivers fanned out on Christmas Day, even emergency and recovery vehicles sent out to help have gotten stuck in the snow. The ambulances that were abandoned were dug out on Sunday.
Hochul urged residents to not drive as a driving ban remains in effect in Erie County through Monday.
White Outs, Black Outs and Blackouts: A Generational Storm for the Buffalo Public Works Authority, Mayor Byron Brown, on NPR’s Morning Edition
“Think about looking just a few feet in front of you at a sheet of white for more than 24 hours in a row. That’s what it was like outside in the worst conditions,” he said. “It was continual blizzard and white outs such that no one could see where they were going. Nobody had any idea what was happening.”
While abandoned cars pepper the snow covered roads, conditions are even more difficult inside homes as hundreds of cars are still on the streets.
Some residents have remained in their homes for the last 56 hours, some without power in the freezing cold, Hochul said during the press conference. This is not due to a lack of resources, the governor said, but rather a mobility and access challenge faced by utility companies.
There are 12,000 homes and businesses in Erie County that were blacked out on Sunday as a result of the winter storm.
Much of the rest of the eastern part of the country will still be in a deep freeze through Monday before a moderating trend sets in on Tuesday, forecasters said.
Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown told NPR’s Morning Edition that his city’s emergency responders have gone “car by car” to perform hundreds of rescues of stranded motorists.
“This has been called a generational storm — a once-in-a-generation storm,” Brown said. ” It’s not something that the city of Buffalo is accustomed to getting.”
“That number is now below 10,000, and we will continue to work aggressively and strategically with National Grid all day today to continue to reduce that number and get everyone’s power restored,” he added, referring to the local utility.
Communities from coast to coast have lost power over the course of the week, but the worst of rolling blackouts appeared to have subsided. PJM interconnection said that utilities could meet the demand after initially asking 65 million customers to conserve energy.
A Cold Storm Overshadows Portland, Oregon, and Washington, D.C., and Its Effects on Traffic and Collision Avoidance
The NWS still advises caution for anyone looking to venture outside: High wind speeds and low temperatures are a recipe for frostbite, which can take root in less than 10 minutes of exposure.
Near Watertown, Copenhagen, a village in New York’s Lewis County, was buried in snow. Driving conditions were so difficult that even snowplows had a tough time navigating the roads, CNN affiliate WWNY reported.
The Michigan area set a daily maximum snowfall record with 10.9 inches of snow on Sunday. The old record of 8 inches was received on December 25, 1992.
Colin Bourgeois told KATU that the trees in Portland could be damaged by strong winds.
The heat dome and the dry summers have hurt trees because it took up so much of their energy to fight off diseases.
Portland recorded 2.12 inches of rain, breaking the previous record of 1.08 inches. The third rainiest December day on record happened on Monday.
The lowlands of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, as well as the coastal areas of southern Oregon and the Bay Area, are at greatest risk for flash-flooding.
The National Weather Service in Los Angeles said goodbye to the warmth. “Big drop in temperatures on track between today and tomorrow (Tuesday). 15-20 degrees of cooling can be expected thanks to the storm system.
The system that left thousands without power in Oregon and closed an interstate in Colorado will sweep through the East on Friday and Saturday. Rain showers will fall on Saturday in the Northeast as tussling storms hit the South.
New York and Washington, DC, will likely be the sites of New Year’s Eve celebrations. A wet new year is expected in Los Angeles.
A flood watch is in effect for the entire Bay Area and Central Valley. Rain could ease Saturday evening before the calendar turns to 2023.
“The slight risk area mostly highlights places that are already high in soil moisture, burn scars and urban areas,” the Weather Prediction Center said.
State Highway and Transportation Department Efforts to Restore Power during the Fourth Day of Atmospheric River Storms on Saturday
The entire section of I-70 in Colorado reopened after being closed for nine hours due to storms and heavy mountain snow.
Dangerous conditions Tuesday in Oregon left five people dead, including a 4-year-old girl, after severe weather caused trees to fall on passing vehicles, state police said.
The so-called atmospheric river storm was pulling in a long and wide plume of moisture from the Pacific Ocean. Flooding and rock slides closed portions of roads across Northern California.
A map on the online site of the Utility District shows more than 153,000 customers went without power on Saturday. “SMUD crews are responding to outages across the region during this powerful winter storm,” the utility said in a Twitter message, adding that it was preparing additional resources while working to restore power.
The state transportation agency reported that there were a lot of road closed, including Highway 70 east of Chico which was partially closed due to a slide, and the north side of Highway 49 which was closed due to flooding. Highway 50 was closed east of Sac State because of flooding.
Rainfall in downtown San Francisco on Saturday topped 5 inches (12.7 centimeters) at midafternoon, making it the second-wettest day on record, behind a November 1994 deluge. With rain continuing to fall, it could threaten the nearly three-decade old record.
The California Highway Patrol said a section of U.S. 101 — one of the state’s main traffic arteries — was closed indefinitely south of San Francisco because of flooding. There were videos on Twitter of mud-colored water streaming down San Francisco streets, and a staircase in Oakland turned into a waterfall.
The storm could dump more than an inch of rain in the area before moving south, according to the weather service. A ski resort south of Lake Tahoe posted on their website that they were temporarily closing their chair lifts because of flooding and operational issues, and showed a photo on social media of a lift tower with chairs surrounded by water.
A map of the precipitation in the region over 24 hours has a wide range, from less than an inch to over 5 inches in the Sierra foothills.
California’s driest drought on record: A tornado warning and record-breaking rainfall for Memphis, South Carolina, and Memphis, Alabama
The car stopped in more than a foot (30 centimeters) of water and the flooded railroad underpass were both posted by the police department.
The rain was welcomed in drought-parched California, but much more precipitation is needed to make a significant difference. The past three years have been California’s driest on record.
Humboldt County, where a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck on Dec. 20, also saw roadways begin to flood, according to the National Weather Service’s Eureka office. The bridge that was temporarily closed last week due to earthquake damage may be shut down again if the Eel River gets too high.
It was the first storm expected to hit California in the next week. The current system is expected to be warmer and wetter, while next week’s storms will be colder, said Hannah Chandler-Cooley, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Sacramento.
The weather service warned that strong winds could cause tree damage and lead to power outages as well as high waves on Lake Tahoe.
On the Sierra’s eastern front, flood watches and warnings were issued into the weekend north and south of Reno, Nevada, where minor to moderate flooding was forecast along some rivers and streams.
The risk of severe storms stretching from the Florida Panhandle to far southeastern Alabama is part of the severe weather threat that 25 million people are under in the South.
A tornado watch is in effect for a large swath of western and southern Alabama, as well as parts of Georgia, Florida and Alabama.
Memphis saw a record-breaking rain Tuesday. Memphis broke its daily record, receiving 3.84 inches, shattering the previous standard of 2.13 inches. A previous daily record of 1.69 inches was set in 1951.
The Southeast could set more than 130 high temperature records Tuesday through Friday, and the Northwest could set more than 40 low temperature records.
A Weather Service Interferometer Warning for Memphis and South Central Arkansas During the Garland County Heavy Ion Collision on Sunday, April 27
Damage was also reported in Jessieville, Arkansas, where multiple buildings of a school sustained damage as trees and powerlines toppled, alogn with several homes in the area, according to the Garland County Sheriff’s Office.
“The school was currently in session at the time, however all students have been accounted for and reports of no injury,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a release.
“The best thing is my husband and I are alive. Sylvia Hester told the station that her life cannot be replaced, but that she is thankful that she is here.
Damage reports were also coming from northern Louisiana, where several transmission highline towers were damaged in the Haile community in Marion. The National Weather Service in Shreveport said that at least one of the towers has been knocked over.
In Jackson Parish, Louisiana, the residents were told to stay out of the streets on Monday due to the weather and downed trees and powerlines.
While those expected rainfall amounts wouldn’t normally have major impacts, the state recently received a lot of rain that left soils saturated and susceptible to flooding and landslides, the Weather Service said.
An ice storm warning goes into effect Monday evening for Memphis and surrounding areas in Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi. Travel could be nearly impossible, according to the warning, which is expected to last through Wednesday afternoon.
There could be freezing rain in Austin on Monday. Icing will be possible mainly late at night through mid-morning, when temperatures will be coldest. The icing is expected to be from one-tenth to a quarter of an inch.
On Tuesday, Texas bridges and roads will become icy, making driving difficult, according to the weather service.
Parts of Arkansas and southern Oklahoma were hit with sleet, freezing rain and ice that made driving dangerous and at least one accident was reported. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said she activated winter weather support teams from the Arkansas National Guard.
And as freezing drizzle spread into central Illinois Sunday evening, the weather service office in Lincoln warned that slick roadways, sidewalks and parking lots are possible. If going out tonight, use caution.
Blowing snow and winds kept visibility down when there was a collision, even at times when no new snow was falling. The areas along the I-80 had between 1 and 5 inches of snow, with isolated areas along the highway seeing even higher amounts.
“In addition to potentially hazardous travel conditions, this amount of ice will lead to tree damage and power outages across the hardest-hit regions,” the National Weather Service warned in its forecast Monday.
Arkansas State of Emergency: Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders urged traffic flow avoidance on Little Rock roads in the light of the Little Rock Ice Storm
Amid such conditions, the governor has requested the state’s emergency management division to increase its resources so it can be ready to respond through Thursday.
As ice began forming on roads in Little Rock, Arkansas, the governor declared a state of emergency Monday and activated the winter weather support teams of the state’s National Guard to be prepared in helping police in their response to the storm.
“I encourage Arkansans who are experiencing winter weather to avoid travel if possible and heed the warnings of local officials,” Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said on Twitter.
The emergency order directed $250,000 to the head of the state’s Division of Emergency Management to provide funding for program and administrative costs.
The real problem will be the ice according to the Arkansas Department of Transportation. “This could potentially be a pretty dangerous situation.”
We expect sufficient generation to meet forecasted demand and are watching forecasts this week. At this time, we are not asking for a lot of things. We are informing the public that IF they are experience an outage to reach out to their local power provider,” the agency said in an email.
The Texas Department of Public Safety and State Highway Safety urged the public to keep their roads icy and snowy: A case study on an accident in Eldorado
Accidents have been reported with icy and snowy roads across the state. The Austin Fire Department said it was seeing a spike in multiple-car pile-ups causing significant injuries and that at least one person had died in a collision.
Abbott urged Texans to stay aware of the weather, check drive Texas.org before traveling, and follow the guidance of local officials.
Additionally, many schools and colleges in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas were planning to shut down or switch to online learning Tuesday, the Associated Press reported.
A 49-year-old woman was killed this week when she lost control of her truck on an icy road north of Eldorado, the Texas Department of Public Safety told CNN on Wednesday.
“Before we got to I-20, we also helped a few other cars who were stuck on the streets,” Muniz said. We came across the standstill on I-20 and helped another 20 trucks.
Everyone was grateful for the help we gave them. Some even asked if we were going to charge them for the help, but we told them we were just there to help.”
“Prepare for tree limb breakage and localized power outages in this region, in addition to hazardous or impossible travel conditions,” the weather service in Dallas warned.
The Texas National Guard is ready to help stranded motorists, as well as clear roads and give welfare checks, Gov. Greg Abbott said. There are at least 30 responders in Texas Parks and Wildlife ready for search and rescue operations.
The North Face of the Snow: Three Foot Snow and Thunder in the Cascade Mountains and Northwest Flares through Mid-Area Rain and Clouds
The Cascade Mountains could see as much as three feet of snow in the highest elevations through Tuesday, while winds in the Pacific Northwest have the potential to gust up to 60 mph. There will be large, breaking waves to coastal areas because of the high seas just offshore.
There are warnings about the high winds and two feet of snow that can be found in southern Wyoming. The weather service also warns of wind chills falling to 25 degrees below zero.
Whether you are buried under three feet of snow and experiencing frigid temperatures or basking in the sunshine and record warmth, this week will touch nearly all corners of the country with wild weather.
The NWS Climate Prediction Center uses the term “anomaly” to describe the overall weather pattern, because of the unusual cold and warmth that people will experience.
At the same time, it will feel more like early summer across the Southeast and up into the Midwest, as nearly 150 million Americans will see a high above 70 degrees this week. It will be a stark contrast that highs in the Dakotas will be below zero and highs in central Florida will be in the 90s.
As part of the same system, rain and thunderstorms are forecast across the Midwest and Plains late Tuesday night into Wednesday, the prediction center said. The Upper Midwest could also see heavy rainfall and severe storms beginning Wednesday.
New High Temperature Record as the Mid-Atlantic to New England Temperature Gradient is Forecasted to be 90 degrees by the Fourth of July
A warm spell will start Tuesday with temperatures in the 70s and 80s, which will be followed by a spell in the 90s on Thursday. These temperatures are running 20 to 35 degrees above normal and are typically highs seen in May or early June.
Atlanta, as well as many other cities, can set new daily high temperature records from Tuesday to Friday, while others can even set new monthly records.
Gov. Tim Walz directed the state’s National Guard, the transportation department and the state patrol to be prepared to respond storm impacts, he said on Twitter.
The governor of South Dakota has decided to close executive branch offices in more than half of his state with plans for employees to work remotely. Additionally, Interstates 29 and 90 partially closed Tuesday night to prepare for the expected snow.
Eastern Wyoming College announced the closure of its main campus. The Natrona County school district in Casper will conduct a virtual learning day Wednesday due to hazardous weather and road conditions throughout the area, the district said.
Heavy snow and high winds will cause whiteout conditions on Wednesday in parts of the Northern U.S.
Schools across Minnesota announced closures as the state’s governor said on Twitter he would direct the state’s National Guard, transportation department and state patrol to be ready to respond.
“The forecast temperature gradient from the Mid-Atlantic into New England Thursday is worth noting, as highs in the 80s in Virginia drop to the single digits in northern Maine,” the NWS said in its bulletin.