A new storm is affecting the eastern part of the nation. The passage of several storms and a tornado claimed the lives of two people: a 28-year-old man who died after being struck by lightning in Alabama and a 15-year-old boy who died after a tree fell on him in South Carolina.
The two weather events have put at least eleven states across the country on alert. A severe thunderstorm warning was issued for Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, North Carolina, upstate New York and Tennessee. In Tennessee, a tornado warning was also activated for the possible arrival of a tornado. The same warning was also extended to West Virginia, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Active weather continues in the East & central Plains. Tornado Watches remain in effect in the Mid-Atlantic & Northeast. Severe thunderstorm Watches are in effect for parts of the Southeast & central Plains. Follow @NWSSPC & your local office on https://t.co/VyWINDk3xP . pic.twitter.com/fDH2VkN7uu
— National Weather Service (@NWS) August 7, 2023
Power supply and airport problems
On Monday night, NBC reports, more than 940,000 homes and businesses were without power in the wake of the storm. According to Poweroutage.us, the hardest-hit states were North Carolina (255,000 customers without power at 10 p.m.), Pennsylvania (170,000 buildings affected) and Georgia (148,000 customers without power). Power problems were also reported in Maryland and Tennessee.
Tourists were also affected by the storm. In the last 24 hours, thousands of flights were delayed and more than 1,000 flights were canceled due to the bad weather conditions. As reported by ABC, airports located in Atlanta, New York, Baltimore, Washington, D.C. and Boston were affected. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also warned of possible complications at airports in Memphis, Dallas, Denver, Orlando, Tampa, Fort Lauderdale and Miami.
The FAA is re-routing aircraft around the storms heading to the East Coast as much as possible. Soon we will likely have to pause departures in and out of East Coast airports including NYC, Philly, DC, Charlotte and Atlanta. Monitor https://t.co/ltA3DmcHcd. #FAAWeatherSquad pic.twitter.com/yk8f1tqBty
— The FAA ✈️ (@FAANews) August 7, 2023
Washington, D.C., at risk 4 for severe storms
The nation's capital, Washington, D.C. also prepared for possible weather complications. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued a statement ordering its officials to leave their posts by 3 p.m. (local time):
Employees of Federal agencies in the Washington, D.C. area are authorized for Early Departure. Employees should depart 2 hours earlier than their normal departure time and may request Unscheduled Leave to depart prior to their staggered departure time. All employees Must Depart no later than 3:00 at which time Federal offices are Closed.
The statement was released just after the National Weather Service activated a risk 4 for severe storms, a level that had not been reached for a decade in the state and that remained active until 9 p.m. (local time). Once the danger had passed, the OPM assured that workers could return to their jobs as of Tuesday with total normality.
