Forecasters in Alabama say a storm system could bring a wintry precipitation as a multiple day stretch of arctic air blankets the Yellowhammer State.
Parts of northern Alabama have a shot at seeing a few snowflakes on Monday, according to the National Weather Service, with more flurry chances across the state later in the week. This includes the Thursday-Saturday timeframe.
The possible snow comes as the eastern two-thirds of the U.S. is experiencing dangerous, bone-chilling cold and wind chills, forecasters said. Temperatures could be 12 to 25 degrees (7 to 14 degrees Celsius) below normal.
The cold air likely will grip the eastern U.S. as far south as Georgia with parts of the East Coast experiencing single-digit lows. The Northeastern states are more likely to experience several days of cold after a mostly mild start to winter, said National Weather Service meteorologist Jon Palmer in Gray, Maine.
The major winter blast of snow, ice, wind and plunging temperatures in the U.S. has stirred dangerous travel conditions from central and southern states all the way to the East Coast early Monday, prompting schools and government offices in several states to close.
Snow and ice blanketed major roads across Kansas, western Nebraska and parts of Indiana, where the state’s National Guard was activated to help stranded motorists. Nearly 300,000 customers were without power early Monday across Kentucky, Indiana, Virginia, West Virginia, Illinois and Missouri, according to electric utility tracking website PowerOutage.us.
The National Weather Service issued winter storm warnings for Kansas and Missouri, where blizzard conditions brought wind gusts of up to 45 mph (72 kph). The warnings extended to New Jersey for Monday and into early Tuesday.
“For locations in this region that receive the highest snow totals, it may be the heaviest snowfall in at least a decade,” the weather service said.
The polar vortex of ultra-cold air usually spins around the North Pole. People in the U.S., Europe and Asia experience its intense cold when the vortex escapes and plunges southward.
Studies show a fast-warming Arctic is partly to blame for the increasing frequency of the polar vortex extending its icy grip.
School closings are expected to be widespread Monday. Districts in Indiana, Virginia, Kentucky, Missouri and Kansas began announcing cancellations and delays on Sunday afternoon. Kentucky’s Jefferson County Public Schools canceled classes, extracurricular activities and athletics for its nearly 100,000 students.
Classes also have been cancelled in Maryland, where Gov. Wes Moore declared a state of emergency Sunday and announced the state government would be closed Monday.
The storms caused havoc for the nation’s passenger railways with more than 20 cancellations Sunday and more than 40 planned Monday and two already planned on Tuesday.
“If local authorities are telling people not to travel, it’s counterintuitive to try to run a full slate of services when people are being told to stay home,” Amtrak spokesperson Marc Magliari said.
More than 1,400 flights were canceled and another 740 delayed nationwide on Monday morning, according to tracking platform FlightAware. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport was reporting about 46% of arrivals and 59% of departures canceled.
