Climate
Massive winter storm leaves 300,000 households without power, thousands of flights canceled
More than 85 million Americans received winter weather warnings on Friday
February 4, 2022 12:47pm
Updated: February 4, 2022 12:50pm
More than 85 million Americans from Texas to New England received winter weather warnings on Friday and over 350,000 people lost power as a massive winter storm passes through the central U.S. and northeast bringing ice, sleet, and freezing rains.
In Tennessee, a significant amount of icefall damaged trees and power lines, affecting over 127,562 households, according to the National Weather Service. More than 100,000 were left without power in Memphis alone, reported the national database PowerOutage.us.
Ohio has the second-largest number of power outages reported, with 83,481. In addition, some areas of the state saw four to 12 inches of snow and wind gusts of 30-35 mph.
Parts of New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont have reported more than a foot of snow, said the weather service. The Northeast should expect more snow throughout the weekend.
A major winter storm is underway across the Central U.S. with snow, sleet, and freezing rain. Areas in the Northeast will start to see wintry weather tonight into tomorrow. Please see our latest Key Messages for details. pic.twitter.com/8ypPAVcEtV
— NWS Weather Prediction Center (@NWSWPC) February 2, 2022
In the south, North Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama are under a flood watch. Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Kansas, and Colorado sent out wind chill alerts.
Parts of Texas have winter storm warnings, wind chill advisories, and freeze warnings. Texans can expect up to half an inch of ice. Dallas broke its daily record of snowfall, with 1.5 inches. Over 15,000 homes were left in the dark early in the morning.
"We are dealing with one of the most significant icing events that we've had in the state of Texas in at least several decades," Texas Governor Greg Abbott said at a news briefing.
The winter storm caused a deadly tornado in Alabama on Thursday, killing one person and critically injuring three others.
Friday saw the highest number of flight cancelations since April 2020. Around 4,125 flights were delayed and 4,164 were canceled as of Friday morning due to the hazardous weather, according to FlightAware.
