Icy blast hits 250 millions Americans and Canadians

• A 2,000-mile-long storm has left 1.5 million without power (3,200 km).
• Near-whiteout conditions across Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan,Buffalo.
• FlightAware reported 5,900 cancelled US flights on Friday.

A severe icy blast that has been related to at least 19 fatalities is currently gripping almost 250 million people in the United States and Canada in advance of the holiday weekend.

Since Thursday, dozens of flights have been cancelled and more than 1.5 million people have without power.

From Texas to Quebec, the enormous storm covers a distance of more than 2,000 miles (3,200 km).

The Great Lakes on the US-Canada border have seen blizzard conditions due to a bomb cyclone, which occurs when air pressure falls.

Near-whiteout conditions have been reported in Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Buffalo, New York, where the US National Weather Service (NWS) reported “zero mile” visibility.

Thousands of people in Ontario and Quebec in Canada lost electricity as a result of the Arctic blast.

Extreme cold and winter storm warnings were in effect for much of the rest of the country, from British Columbia to Newfoundland.

Elk Park, in the US state of Montana, experienced temperatures as low as -50°F (-45°C), while Hell, Michigan, experienced a complete freeze-over.

The community was covered in snow, and Friday night it was 1F (-17C). It’s really cold here, but Emily, a bartender at Smitty’s Hell Saloon, told the Media, “We’re having a hell of a time.”

Native Americans stranded by snow in South Dakota burnt clothing for heat after running out of fuel, according to tribe officials.

Some locals in the Pacific Northwest ice skated on Portland’s and Seattle’s frozen streets.

Hard-freeze advisories were in effect even in the typically milder southern states of Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, and Georgia.

In certain parts of Pennsylvania and Michigan, a lot of snow was predicted.

The NWS reported that more than eight million people were still under blizzard warnings.

In New England, New York, and New Jersey, villages have been inundated by coastal flooding, which has also brought down power lines.

Some locals in the Pacific Northwest ice skated on Portland’s and Seattle’s frozen streets.

Hard-freeze advisories were in effect even in the typically milder southern states of Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, and Georgia.

Road traffic incidents have been involved in a number of storm-related deaths, including a 50-car pileup that claimed the lives of four drivers in Ohio. Four other people perished in separate accidents in the state.

As travelers struggled to make it home for Christmas, more than 5,900 US flights were cancelled on Friday, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. There have already been 1,600 additional Saturday flights cancelled.

Rolling blackouts were being implemented by utilities throughout the Tennessee Valley in order to conserve energy.

Low pay rates were to blame for the shortage of snow plough drivers, which was causing travel issues across the nation.

Also Read

US winter storm can lead to frostbite within minutes

The temperature in Colorado was 42F. On Friday, it dropped to a...