Extensive Winter Weather System Affects United States, Causing Fatalities, Widespread Outages, and Travel Disruptions

A prolonged winter weather system impacted a wide area of the United States, extending from the Southern Plains to the Northeast, over a period of approximately two weeks beginning in late January. The event led to at least 110 reported fatalities, widespread power outages affecting up to one million customers, and significant travel disruptions, including up to 19,000 flight cancellations. Millions of Americans experienced frigid temperatures, heavy snow, sleet, and ice accumulation, prompting numerous states to declare emergencies.

Storm Progression and Geographic Reach

The initial winter weather system began to affect western states on a Friday in late January, then moved eastward through the weekend and into the following week. It impacted regions from eastern New Mexico through Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, the Ohio River Valley, and extending into the Northeast.

The system also affected areas from the Southern Rockies to the Mid-Atlantic Coast, covering approximately 40 U.S. states and impacting an estimated 245 million people. Parts of Canada also experienced effects from the storm.

Weather Conditions

The weather system brought a combination of heavy snow, sleet, freezing rain, and ice. Frigid temperatures, including extreme cold and dangerously low wind chills, were reported across the affected regions.

• Heavy snow accumulations included up to two feet in parts of Kentucky, Virginia, and the central Appalachians.
• Major cities such as New York City, Boston, and Oklahoma City saw 12 to 18 inches of snow. Some areas along the North Carolina coast received nearly a foot of snow, while other parts of the Carolinas, western Tennessee, and southeastern Virginia experienced 6-12 inches.
• Ice and sleet were primary concerns in the Southern U.S., with the highest potential for freezing rain in northern Louisiana, southeast Arkansas, northern Mississippi, and southern middle Tennessee.
• Ice accumulations reached half an inch to one inch in some locations, with parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee seeing ice up to 2.5 centimeters thick.

• Temperatures dropped to record lows in parts of the southern Plains and mid-Atlantic regions.
• Wind chills reached below -45 degrees Celsius (-50 degrees Fahrenheit) in northern U.S. areas, including the Dakotas and Minnesota, where frostbite could occur in minutes.
• Sub-zero conditions extended as far south as the southern Plains, lower Mississippi Valley, Ohio Valley, and mid-Atlantic.
• Florida experienced temperatures in the 20s and 30s Fahrenheit, marking its coldest conditions since 1989 in some areas.
• New York City experienced wind chills as low as -15 to -20 degrees Fahrenheit.

The winter weather system was attributed to the collision of a cold air mass from the north with a plume of moisture from the southwest, and an Arctic air mass combining with dense moisture from the Pacific and Gulf of Mexico. A "bomb cyclone" (rapidly intensifying low-pressure system) also contributed to a subsequent storm impacting the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.

Impacts

The winter weather system resulted in widespread disruptions across the United States.

At least 110 storm-related deaths were reported across multiple states over the period. Causes included hypothermia, suspected carbon monoxide poisoning, exposure-related incidents, and accidents involving vehicles (cars, snowplows, sleds). Deaths were reported in states including New York, Tennessee, Louisiana, Texas, Kansas, Arkansas, Massachusetts, and Ohio.

• Up to one million customers experienced power outages across the affected regions, with over 800,000 remaining without electricity at peak times.
• Southern states, including Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, were particularly impacted.
• Outages in some areas lasted for several days or over a week, largely due to ice accumulation weighing down trees and power lines.

• Air Travel:

  • Over 19,000 flights were canceled across the U.S. during the period of disruption, affecting major airports including Dallas, Atlanta, Charlotte, Philadelphia, Boston, New York, Washington D.C., and Memphis.
  • Airlines issued travel advisories and waived rebooking fees.

• Road Travel:

  • Roads, bridges, and overpasses became hazardous or impassable due to snow, ice, and black ice.
  • Interstates such as I-10, I-20, I-30, I-35, I-40, I-44, I-49, and I-55 experienced difficult or impossible navigation.
  • Vehicle gridlock occurred on Mississippi interstates, hindering emergency supply distribution.
  • Authorities advised against non-essential travel.

• School systems in cities like Chicago, Des Moines, Milwaukee, and Philadelphia canceled classes or shifted to remote learning.
• Communities faced shortages of food, water, medicine, and fuel, particularly in isolated areas.
• Health concerns included frostbite, hypothermia, and carbon monoxide poisoning from unsafe heating methods.
• Infrastructure damage included fallen trees, sagging power lines, and coastal erosion.

Government and Public Response

Federal, state, and local governments implemented various measures to address the winter weather.

• At least 24 states—Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia—along with Washington, D.C., declared states of emergency.
• President Trump approved federal emergency disaster declarations for 12 states.

• These declarations enabled pre-treating highways, staging supplies and equipment, deploying National Guard troops (e.g., in Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Alabama), and activating emergency response resources.

• The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) pre-positioned over 7 million meals, 3 million liters of water, 650,000 blankets, and 180 generators.

• Officials urged residents to monitor local weather sources, prepare for potential extended power outages, assemble emergency kits, protect pipes, and avoid non-essential travel.
• Cities activated freeze plans and opened inclement-weather shelters and warming stations, accessible to all individuals.

Lingering Cold and Subsequent Weather System

Following the initial storm, frigid temperatures persisted across the eastern two-thirds of the U.S. throughout the week, hindering recovery efforts and ice melting.

• Subfreezing temperatures were forecast to continue into February, with some regions experiencing the coldest and longest-duration cold spell in decades.
• Wind chills reached below zero in southern states and as low as -40 degrees Fahrenheit in parts of the Northeast.

• As the initial system subsided, meteorologists forecast an increasing potential for another winter storm, forming off the Carolina coast and impacting the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, and potentially parts of New England the following weekend.
• This system, which rapidly intensified into a "bomb cyclone," brought additional snow, strong winds, and coastal flooding. Blizzard conditions were possible along parts of the North Carolina and Virginia coasts.

• While warmer-than-normal temperatures were expected in the West, the East was projected to remain cold before a general warming trend by mid-to-late February, returning to seasonal conditions in the Northeast.