A massive winter storm that brought snow, ice, wind and Arctic-like temperatures hit a large swath of the United States from Kansas to New Jersey.
More than a dozen states, covering about 60 million people, were under severe storm warnings, advisories or watches from Sunday night into Monday.
Governors in several states, including Kansas, Kentucky, Arkansas, West Virginia and Virginia, declared states of emergency.
“Central Kansas and Indiana, especially along and north of Interstate 70, are likely to experience heavy snowfall, with a high probability (60-90%) of at least 8 inches [20 centimeters] of snowfall,” the “Extreme” forecast said. . . The National Weather Service (NWS) called it the “heaviest snowfall in a decade.”
Blizzard conditions brought winds of up to 45 mph (72.42 kph) to Kansas and Missouri, and the NWS issued a tornado watch for New Jersey for Monday and Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas were under “tornado watches,” and the NWS said the same warning was issued earlier for Mississippi.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear urged residents to “please stay home” after reports of multiple vehicle accidents.
In Virginia, at least 135 crashes were reported as the storm moved into the state on Sunday. A handful of injuries were reported, but no fatalities were reported.
Missouri police said they responded to nearly 600 stranded drivers and 285 crashes.
Air traffic control website FlightAware shows nearly 2,200 flight cancellations and more than 25,000 delays.
As the storm moves toward the coast, frigid temperatures are expected to persist through Tuesday. Many schools, including public schools in Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Washington and Philadelphia, have decided to remain closed Monday.
However, Washington, D.C., which is in the storm’s path, is expecting severe weather on Monday as the new Congress is set to convene to officially confirm Donald Trump’s election victory.