People in the US are preparing for winter storms, which will apparently be the strongest in recent years. The ABC channel reported that over 180 million people are on alert. At least 18 federal states have declared a state of emergency – among them are New York, Jordan, Virginia, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas and Texas. This will allow them to mobilize financial aid and volunteers more quickly, explains ARD.
Dangerously low temperatures
“Millions of people are affected by catastrophic ice and snow conditions“, CNN reported. American media published photos of emptied supermarket shelves and prepared temporary shelters. "This is a dangerous combination of a lot of snow and extremely cold temperatures," said New York Governor Kathy Hochul.
The storm will spread over a distance of about 3,000 kilometers from New Mexico in the southwest to Maine in the northeast over the weekend, the weather service warned.
Air traffic is severely affected
All travel is severely disrupted. Airlines such as Delta Air Lines have canceled numerous flights and urged passengers to change their plans. According to ABC, more than 8,000 flights have been canceled for the weekend. According to data from the analytical company Cirium, about two-thirds of all scheduled departures at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport for Saturday have already been canceled.
Chaos on the roads and the risk of power outages
Chaos is also expected on the roads: for parts of the South, including Louisiana and Mississippi, experts predict “catastrophic” accumulations of ice that could make roads impassable and cut power lines.
In the northern states of Minnesota and the Dakotas, temperatures in some places have dropped significantly below zero. In Texas, the forecast is reminiscent of the ice storm of 2021, when the power grid collapsed and millions of people were left without power for days, the German public media recalls.