It’s set to disrupt millions.
Millions of Americans are preparing for a major winter storm expected to bring the heaviest snowfalls and coldest temperatures to parts of the country in over ten years. States like Kansas, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Virginia have declared states of emergency as the storm, fueled by a polar vortex, spreads eastward after hitting the central U.S. Other southern states, including Mississippi and Florida, are also under warnings for severe cold and hazardous conditions, according to the National Weather Service.
A polar vortex, which is an area of cold air circulating around the poles, can shift southward, sending frigid temperatures into parts of North America. As this storm progresses, about 60 million people across 30 states from the Plains to the mid-Atlantic are under weather alerts. The developing low-pressure system threatens heavy snow, ice, and dangerous conditions for the next few days.
The storm has already caused widespread disruptions, including more than 1,200 flight delays and over 750 cancellations as of Sunday morning, particularly at major airports like Kansas City International and St. Louis Lambert International. Kansas City Airport even had to briefly close on Saturday to clear snow from the runways, which delayed numerous flights, including one carrying the Kansas City Chiefs.
In addition to flight disruptions, the storm has also caused hazardous travel conditions. A stretch of Interstate 70 in Kansas was closed due to blizzard conditions, and snowfall of up to 15 inches is predicted for parts of Kansas and Missouri, marking the region’s heaviest snowfall in over a decade. The National Weather Service has issued blizzard warnings for areas including Kansas and Missouri, with wind gusts up to 40 mph expected to further reduce visibility and make driving extremely dangerous.
As the storm moves eastward, cities in the mid-Atlantic like Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Philadelphia are preparing for snow and ice, with some regions expecting up to a foot of snow. Southern states such as Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi are also bracing for severe weather, including potential tornadoes and damaging winds. The storm is expected to bring a sharp drop in temperatures, with highs across the eastern U.S. dropping 10 to 25 degrees below average, and extreme cold conditions affecting the northern Plains with wind chills reaching minus 40. Cold weather advisories are in effect for much of the Midwest and Northern Plains, and power outages have affected thousands of customers in multiple states.
