(Washington) Millions of Americans took shelter on Sunday as a “major winter storm”, according to the weather services, hit the eastern United States with its share of snow and ice, causing power cuts affecting at least 145,000 people.
Updated yesterday at 11:52 p.m.
“A major winter storm will hit the eastern United States between Sunday and Monday,” the National Weather Service (NWS) had warned, indicating that up to 30 centimeters of snow could cover an area that extends from Tennessee and Georgia. , in the Southeast, Vermont and New York, in the Northeast, with strong winds and freezing rain. Winds could reach hurricane force on the Atlantic coast, the NWS warned.
Several states reported traffic disruptions in the evening.
Thousands of flights have been canceled and part of Interstate I95 closed in North Carolina. Motorists have been warned of “hazardous road conditions” and heavy traffic from Arkansas to Maine.
“Arctic air already in place in the central and eastern United States will combine with this dynamic system to create a thick layer of more than 30 centimeters of snow,” according to the NWS, which forecasts along the Appalachian Mountain Range snowfall of 2.5 cm per hour on Monday and freezing conditions on Tuesday.
Florida, more accustomed to fair weather even at this time of year, was indirectly affected when several tornadoes accompanied by snow, brought on by this winter storm caused property damage and caused coastal flooding on Sunday, according to the Weather Channel. .
PHOTO @JRMOZER5, @JRMOZER5 VIA REUTERS
Tornado is spotted in Naples, Florida
From North and South Carolina up the Appalachians, ice and gusty winds complicate the situation.
The winter weather alert affects more than 80 million people, according to US media. Some 3,000 domestic or international flights were canceled by mid-afternoon on Sunday, according to the FlightAware website, and around 4,200 were delayed.
Emergency state
Power outages affected up to about 235,000 people in the Southeast, including more than 150,000 in the Carolinas, according to PowerOutage.us, but power appeared to be restored in several areas by evening. reducing the number of people without electricity to less than 145,000.
In Georgia, another state among the most affected, Governor Brian Kemp had declared a state of emergency on Friday, and snowplows were at work before noon to clear the roads. Mild Atlanta has seen snowfall.
Virginia and North Carolina have also declared states of emergency. More than 30 cm of snow fell on the latter state, according to the weather channel.
Virginia police announced on Twitter several minor traffic accidents and the stoppage of traffic on a major highway in the south of the state.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper confirmed on Twitter that up to 30cm of snow had fallen in some areas by midday and that “heavy icing was causing problems in central ‘State’, while calling on the population to stay sheltered and avoid displacement if possible.
In this same state, students experienced a big scare with the collapse of the roof of a university residence, according to the local channel ABC, an incident which did not cause any injuries. “It was very scary,” Brevard College student Melody Ferguson told the channel, “I’m still shaking.”
The northeastern United States had already found snow in early January, covered with a white coat up to 30 cm thick. Hundreds of motorists had been stranded for nearly 20 hours on a major axis linking the capital Washington.
The storm is expected to reach eastern Canada on Tuesday, the NWS estimates.