As a destructive winter wind triggered the possibility of the “heaviest rain in a decade” in some components of the US on Sunday, a slew of snow, wind, and freezing temperatures caused dangerous travel conditions.
In some areas of Kansas and Indiana, where the country’s National Guard was activated to assist any trapped drivers, ice and snow fell and plowed through main thoroughfares. As the National Weather Service issued storm warnings from Kansas and Missouri, where cold circumstances were reported, to New Jersey into Monday, at least 8 inches of snow were forecast. It may be the heaviest rain in at least a decade for places in this region that receive the most winter, according to the weather service early on Sunday. Additionally, power outages, fallen trees, and go problems at airports and on roads are all possible.
About 63 million persons in the US were under some kind of winter temperature advice, watch or warning on Sunday, according to climate services.
The ultra-cold air’s arctic swirl spins like a major and typically wraps itself around the North Pole. However, it occasionally travels or extends down to the United States, Europe, or Asia, and that’s when a lot of people get extremely warm. According to research, the boost in antarctic swirl stretching is attributable to a rapidly warming Arctic.
Starting Monday the northeast two-thirds of the country will experience harmful, bone-chilling cold and storm chills, experts said. As the antarctic swirl descends from the great Arctic, conditions may be 12 to 25 degrees Fahrenheit ( 7 to 14 degrees Fahrenheit ) below normal. In Chicago on Sunday, temperatures hovered in minus 7 to 10 degrees Celsius and around zero F in Minneapolis ( minus 18 C), while dropping to 11 F below ( minus 24 C ) in International Falls, Minnesota, on the Canadian border.
Some states in the course of the wind system- including Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri and Virginia- have declared states of emergency, and Maryland declared a condition of preparedness. Upstate New York experienced 3 foot or more of snow in parts of the state, which was expected to continue until late Sunday evening.
More than 2, 000 airlines have been delayed and 1, 500 cancellled in and out of the US today, BBC reported citing monitoring website FlightAware. According to the life information, Kansas City International Airport was the worst affected for outgoing planes, with 86 % cancelled. For inbound flights, St. Louis Lambert International Airport in Missouri tops the chart, with 53 % of flights delayed and 7 % cancelled as of 10.20am EST. Additionally, the storm caused several trains to be canceled by Amtrak.
By Tuesday, the winter may have ended in the mid-Atlantic, although some light frost may persist over the main Appalachians. Cold, stormy weather is forecast through the year. ” It’s going to be very cold for a great part of the week”, NWS ‘ Bob Oravec said.
