More than 100 million people across the United States are under winter storm alerts. The National Weather Service confirmed that the natural phenomenon, which has been affecting the country since the beginning of this week, will bring heavy snowfall and sub-zero temperatures to people living between Iowa and New Jersey:
🥶 Another arctic air outbreak is forecast across much of the central and eastern U.S. through this weekend. This event will not be as frigid as the last outbreak, however, temperatures and wind chills will still be hazardous across a large part of the nation. pic.twitter.com/1nTNBatt49
— NWS Weather Prediction Center (@NWSWPC) January 18, 2024
Snowfall could occur in some regions of the central Appalachians and parts of the northern Mid-Atlantic. Snowfall is also forecast in cities such as New York, Washington DC and Philadelphia. AccuWeather's senior meteorologist, Brett Anderson, explained what to expect:
The dry, powdery nature of the snow and cold ground will lead to immediate accumulations on the roads so that soon after the storm begins, slippery conditions will develop.
Oregon, the state most affected by the winter storm
FlightAware reported that a total of 843 flights were canceled across the country and another 2,605 suffered delays. In Oregon, Poweroutage.us reported, as of 9:27 a.m. (EST) on Friday, a total of 109,454 people reported being without power. The state's governor, Tina Kotek, declared a state of emergency due to poor weather conditions:
Heeding the call from several counties, I am issuing a statewide state of emergency due to the ongoing severe ice storm. pic.twitter.com/3TEOyXYkYF
— Governor Tina Kotek (@GovTinaKotek) January 19, 2024
The problems don't end there. People are asked to remain cautious. The storm brought traffic to a standstill and caused several schools in Tennessee, Ohio, Virginia, New York and New Jersey to close this Friday. Some will offer online classes.
Florida warns of possible "falling iguanas"
The situation has become so concerning that several meteorologists warned that low temperatures could bring an unexpected consequence in Florida: "Falling iguanas." This phenomenon occurs when these cold-blooded reptiles become stunned due to low temperatures and fall from the trees onto the ground. WINX News chief meteorologist Matt Devitt said:
*FALLING IGUANAS* possible this weekend in Southwest Florida as the coldest air of the season moves in Sunday morning. We have a pretty sizable iguana population from Sanibel to Cape Coral to Naples. Locally, lows will dip into the 40s, wind chills in the 30s by sunrise. 🥶🦎… pic.twitter.com/PSzk4JZuvN
— Matt Devitt (@MattDevittWX) January 18, 2024
