Divided
A historic cold snap is sweeping through the United States. People across the country are trying to protect themselves from the life-threatening frost.
Washington/Frankfurt – Icy wind whips snow along the highway. The hood of the police officer in the US state of Wyoming is barely visible from the police officer’s car: Whiteout, snow like a white wall, visibility is zero, every driver’s nightmare. As seen in the dashcam video of the Wyoming State Trooper that the newspaper New York Post Posted on its website, motorists across much of the northern and midwestern United States have been affected in recent days.
Extreme frost, blizzards and freezing winds: The United States will be hit by a dramatic cold snap this Christmas season. More than 200 million Americans were affected by severe weather warnings the day before Christmas (December 23), the US Weather Service reported. Dangers from drastic drops in temperature, freezing winds and massive snowfalls threaten “from coast to coast”. In Denver, Colorado, temperatures dropped about 40 degrees in 24 hours as the Arctic cold front passed.
According to media reports, at least five people died in apparently weather-related traffic crashes in Kansas and Oklahoma by Friday (Dec. 23).
Cold wave in the USA: more than 3,000 flights cancelled
There were chaotic scenes in the airports. The website reported that more than 3,000 flights were canceled on Friday (December 23) alone. FlightAware. Especially passengers from the north, around the great lakes, can plan their Christmas trips. In a video that the TV channel Weather channel Posted on his website, an armada of snowplows can be seen trying to clear the asphalt at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, one of the most important airports in the country.
An hour’s flight east to Cleveland on the south shore of Lake Erie, it came crashing down FlightAware on Friday (December 23) nearly 70 percent of all flights. And it doesn’t go beyond that even by land. Numerous train and bus connections have been canceled and the authorities warn against driving by car. The Weather Service has warned that those stranded on roads due to snow and ice could face the freezing winds as a death trap.
It’s especially tough for those who don’t have a roof over their heads. Across the country, rescuers are trying to save the many homeless people from the cold. At a church mission in Augusta, Georgia, they prepared for an assault like themselves New York Times reported. “It may not be a matter of life and death on a normal night,” said the mission chief, “but it is now.” According to media reports, at least five homeless people froze to death in Salt Lake City, Utah earlier this week. And even in Miami, where it’s usually warm, Homeless Relief has promulgated its cold-weather emergency plan.
Weather at Christmas: Storm hits Germany – bad weather warning.
Bad weather in the US: the electricity grid collapsed due to the cold
In the state of Texas, the extreme cold spell brings back dark memories. Last year the electricity grid collapsed due to the cold and millions of people were left without electricity for days. According to studies, more than 200 people are said to have died as a result.
But this time be better prepared. “The power grid is ready and reliable,” he quotes New York Times a responsible person. Friday (December 23) according to the website PowerOutage.us out of more than 12 million pantographs in Texas, more than 80,000 are without electricity. Nationwide, more than a million people would be sitting in the dark.
The north of the country is particularly affected by ice, wind and snow, especially around the Great Lakes. “Waves up to six meters high are expected in each of the Great Lakes,” the newspaper quoted Detroit Free Press a scientist with the State Meteorological and Oceanographic Agency. Authorities have already responded on the eastern shore of Lake Erie near Niagara Falls. In the city of Hamburg, New York, residents near the water have reportedly been asked to evacuate their homes.
US cold wave: Temperatures are expected to rise again soon
In the metropolis of Chicago on the shores of Lake Michigan, winter services also had their hands full. Further east, in the state of Indiana, the governor has mobilized the National Guard to protect people from the expected snowstorms.
But just as quickly as the phantom cold hit the United States, it could also end again. In some areas of the country’s northwest, temperatures are expected to rise again soon once the cold air core passes, according to forecasts from the National Weather Service. In many places it should be 20-30 degrees warmer by the weekend. (case/dpa)
