Winter Storm Kills Many People in Many US States
A huge winter storm hit the US, bringing snow, ice, and freezing rain that killed at least 30 people across the country. Victims died from hypothermia, car accidents, and being outside in the cold as temperatures dropped and emergency services had trouble getting to them.
As conditions quickly got worse, state and local officials said people had died in New York, Massachusetts, Ohio, Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana, and Kansas. Officials told people to stay inside because the roads were blocked and it took a lot longer for emergency services to get there.
Source: Khyber News/Website
Power Outages and Infrastructure Failures Hit Millions Nationwide
Ice and heavy snow damaged power lines in southern states, cutting off electricity to more than 630,000 homes and businesses. Utility workers had to deal with dangerous conditions while trying to fix things in freezing rain and temperatures that stayed below zero.
Emergency management agencies said that long power outages could make things worse for people who are already at risk, like elderly people and low-income families. To stop more deaths from hypothermia, warming centers were set up in several cities.
Flight Cancellations Surge as Airports Struggle With Icy Conditions
More than 12,000 flights were delayed or canceled in a single day in the United States, which made air travel very difficult. Airlines said that dangerous travel conditions caused delays in deicing planes on the runway and a lack of crew members.
Cirium, a company that analyzes the aviation industry, said that the number of cancellations was at levels not seen since the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the storm system moved east, more cancellations were expected.
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Federal Emergency Declarations Expand Disaster Response Efforts
Officials at the White House said that President Donald Trump agreed to 12 federal emergency disaster declarations in the states that were affected. The declarations made federal money and resources available to help states with emergency operations.
The government says that these steps are meant to restore power, clear roads, and make sure that emergency medical services can get to people. Governors stressed how important it was for the federal government to help out because the storm was so big.
Extreme Cold Alerts Issued for Nearly 200 Million People
The National Weather Service said that about 190 million people in the US were under alerts for extreme cold. Meteorologists said that wind chills could get so low at night that they could be deadly.
Residents were told to stay inside as much as possible and check on their neighbors because the temperature was expected to stay below freezing all week. Officials warned that even a short amount of time outside could cause frostbite.
Polar Vortex Disruption Drives Unusually Severe Winter Conditions
Scientists said that the storm was caused by a stretched polar vortex that sent Arctic air deep into North America. This change in the atmosphere let cold air spread farther south than it usually does in the winter.
Researchers say that climate change may affect how often these kinds of problems happen, but natural variability is still a factor. Researchers are still working to learn more about these complicated weather patterns.
Economic Damage Expected to Rank Among Costliest US Storms
AccuWeather said that the first estimates of economic losses were between $105 billion and $115 billion. The storm could end up being the most costly weather disaster in the US since the big wildfires in early 2025.
Business closures, transportation shutdowns, and repairs to infrastructure are all expected to hurt the economies of the region. Officials said that it might take weeks to get things back to normal because cleanup is still going on.
