An Arctic winter storm has hit large parts of the United States put into a state of cold paralysis over the weekend. At least 13 people are said to have fallen victim to the storm so far. More than a million US households were temporarily without power on Sunday.
From Texas to Maine, winter storm “Fern” has put a strain on the partly outdated infrastructure in recent days with freezing temperatures and large amounts of precipitation. Air and road traffic also came to an almost complete standstill in many regions.
More than half a meter of snow could fall in the east coast metropolis of Boston by Monday evening. Thousands of flights have been canceled in recent days as a precautionary measure. The US National Weather Service (NWS) issued a winter storm warning for around 213 million people in the country on Sunday morning.
Trees and power lines in particular had little to counteract the combination of snow and freezing rain. In New York state, a new minus record of 45 degrees below zero was measured in the small town of Copenhagen near the Canadian border.
However, the situation will remain threatening in the next few days due to the persistent freezing temperatures. “The dangers are not over even after the precipitation ends. In many areas where ice, freezing rain, sleet and snow are still falling, temperatures will remain below freezing throughout the work week,” NWS meteorologist Brian Hurley told the newspaper USA Today.
On Saturday, US President Donald Trump approved the emergency requests of at least a dozen states that are in the path of the giant storm.
Life-threatening temperatures
In New York, five people were found dead outdoors in the past few days, said Mayor Zohran Mamdani. However, an autopsy must first clarify the exact circumstances of death. In Louisiana, 2 people died of hypothermia. In Arkansas, a 17-year-old had a fatal accident when his sled crashed into a tree. The sled the teenager was on was being pulled by a vehicle at the time of the accident. The authorities also had to report fatalities in Kansas, Michigan, Tennessee and Texas.
In Tennessee alone, over 300,000 households were left in the dark on Sunday. In other southern states such as Mississippi and Louisiana, the number of power outages also reached six figures.
Shelters have been prepared in many places for homeless people or people who cannot heat their house or apartment due to a power outage.
The winter storm also caused chaos in the sky. With over 11,000 canceled flights and more than 16,000 delays, air traffic was extremely disrupted. One of three airports in the Washington metropolitan area canceled all flights on Sunday.
Fun in the snow
But the storm didn’t just bring bad news. In many regions, people are taking advantage of the sudden onset of winter to have a little fun in the snow. In the US capital Washington, the slope in front of the US Capitol was quickly transformed into a toboggan run by children.
People in New York’s Central Park also tried to make the best of the situation. According to reports, even Olympic snowboard champion Shaun White didn’t miss out on the fun and showed off his skills with a few jumps.
Schools, universities and public institutions will remain closed in many places on Monday.