A ‘dangerous, damaging and destructive’ Polar blast threatens the coldest January freeze for almost 15 years.
‘Brutal’ Arctic winds sweeping 3,000 miles across the United States will unleash torrents of snow and throw thermometers into freefall.
Temperatures across eastern states will drop 40F below average this weekend as the region braces for weeks of winter torment.
AccuWeather long-range weather expert Paul Pastelok said: “Following a stretch of milder air across much of the East Coast, several blasts of Arctic air will bring drastically colder weather to the region during the first half of January.
“Bitterly cold air will make a big return to the East Coast starting this weekend, and for the US, this could end up being the coldest January since 2011.
“The severity of the cold air could be dangerous, damaging and disruptive in some places and is expected to create a surge in demand for heating, leading to higher energy bills.”
Swaths of the country are about to freeze in temperatures 20F lower than normal for the time of year.
Savagely cold weather shows no signs of easing until at least the middle of January, according to experts.
AccuWeather’s Bernie Rayno said: “Bitterly cold air will sweep across much of the country by the middle of next week.
“Blasts of Arctic air could drop temperatures 10F to 20F or more below the historical average across much of the eastern and central United States.
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“As the cold air deepens and tightens its grip before mid-January, subzero temperatures will grip a large swath of the Midwest and Ohio Valley.”
In the northern Plains and Midwest, temperatures could drop 40F below the historical average, he warned.
The big freeze threatens power outages, ‘rolling blackouts’ and widespread travel disruption.
AccuWeather’s senior director of forecasting operations Dan DePodwin said: “The historic February 2021 Arctic blast caused millions of power outages and tens of billions of dollars in damage and economic loss.
“This cold wave is expected to be focused farther east and may spare Texas the worst conditions.
“However, the first half of January has the potential to be remembered across the eastern half of the United States as a brutally cold stretch with subfreezing temperatures all the way to the Gulf Coast which is dangerous, especially in places that do not typically experience freezing conditions.”
Cold air passing the Great Lakes will trigger intense snowfall which will blanket surrounding regions.
People heading onto the roads are warned to prepare for disruptive weather and highway pileups.
Further north, bitterly cold temperatures will bring the first proper taste of winter after a milder start to the season.
Jim Dale, US meteorologist for British Weather Services and co-author of ‘Surviving Extreme Weather’, said: “The northeast is going to see a good deal of very wintry weather over the next week, and it is going to turn much colder.
“The cold stuff is going to come in from Canada into the northeast and across the Great Lakes, and that means there will be a growing risk of heavy and widespread snow.”
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‘Brutal’ Arctic winds sweeping 3,000 miles across the United States will unleash torrents of snow and throw thermometers into freefall.
Temperatures across eastern states will drop 40F below average this weekend as the region braces for weeks of winter torment.
AccuWeather long-range weather expert Paul Pastelok said: “Following a stretch of milder air across much of the East Coast, several blasts of Arctic air will bring drastically colder weather to the region during the first half of January.
“Bitterly cold air will make a big return to the East Coast starting this weekend, and for the US, this could end up being the coldest January since 2011.
“The severity of the cold air could be dangerous, damaging and disruptive in some places and is expected to create a surge in demand for heating, leading to higher energy bills.”
Swaths of the country are about to freeze in temperatures 20F lower than normal for the time of year.
Savagely cold weather shows no signs of easing until at least the middle of January, according to experts.
AccuWeather’s Bernie Rayno said: “Bitterly cold air will sweep across much of the country by the middle of next week.
“Blasts of Arctic air could drop temperatures 10F to 20F or more below the historical average across much of the eastern and central United States.
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“As the cold air deepens and tightens its grip before mid-January, subzero temperatures will grip a large swath of the Midwest and Ohio Valley.”
In the northern Plains and Midwest, temperatures could drop 40F below the historical average, he warned.
The big freeze threatens power outages, ‘rolling blackouts’ and widespread travel disruption.
AccuWeather’s senior director of forecasting operations Dan DePodwin said: “The historic February 2021 Arctic blast caused millions of power outages and tens of billions of dollars in damage and economic loss.
“This cold wave is expected to be focused farther east and may spare Texas the worst conditions.
“However, the first half of January has the potential to be remembered across the eastern half of the United States as a brutally cold stretch with subfreezing temperatures all the way to the Gulf Coast which is dangerous, especially in places that do not typically experience freezing conditions.”
Cold air passing the Great Lakes will trigger intense snowfall which will blanket surrounding regions.
People heading onto the roads are warned to prepare for disruptive weather and highway pileups.
Further north, bitterly cold temperatures will bring the first proper taste of winter after a milder start to the season.
Jim Dale, US meteorologist for British Weather Services and co-author of ‘Surviving Extreme Weather’, said: “The northeast is going to see a good deal of very wintry weather over the next week, and it is going to turn much colder.
“The cold stuff is going to come in from Canada into the northeast and across the Great Lakes, and that means there will be a growing risk of heavy and widespread snow.”
Find Out More...