Extreme cold affects 95 million people in the United States. The Arctic storms leave four deaths and blackouts in their wake, painting the south of the country white and hitting the northeast. The extreme conditions forced the cancellation of flights, political events and even an NFL game in the United States, while in Mexico they warn of a “certain energy emergency” due to the cold. The weather conditions have also affected the US electoral campaign, which This Monday he lives his first fight.
Heavy snowfall covers the roads of the United States whose territory is affected by a winter storm that has semi-paralyzed many cities and leaves a saldo of four dead and thousands without electricity.
Below-zero temperatures are changing the agenda with cancellations of flights, political and sporting events. In the United States alone there are 95 million people under wind chill warnings and in some states temperatures as low as -56 degrees Celsius are expected.
The frigid temperatures will put a damper on the political scene in Iowa, where Republican presidential candidates had to cancel events ahead of the party's first nominating contest, scheduled for this Monday, January 15.
Forecasters warn of the spread of severe cold into northern Texas, while a powerful gust causes wind chills of up to -70 degrees Celsius in Montana and the Dakotas.
The South Dakota Department of Public Safety asked people to stay home. In Buffalo, New York, the NFL playoff game between the Buffalo Bills and Pittsburgh Steelers was rescheduled for this Monday, due to the forecast of snowfall of 30 to 60 centimeters. Winds at 30 mph and snow falling at a rate of 5 centimeters per hour modified plans.
“It seems like a good day not to have a football game”, New York Governor and Buffalo native Kathy Hochul posted in X. For his part, Zack Taylor, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland, warned that the Northeast would suffer heavy snow and extreme winds. “That's why you expect to see near-blizzard conditions at times,” Taylor said.
In Oregon, more than 120,000 homes and businesses were without power, most of them in Portland. “Given the extent of the damage and the high level of outages, restoration efforts will continue throughout the week and customers are encouraged to plan,” a statement from Portland General Electric said.
Widespread power outages affecting thousands were reported Sunday in Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. “Winter came faster and has been longer than expected”commented the Omaha Public Power District in Nebraska.
Airports across the country are suffering the consequences. More than 50% of incoming and outgoing flights at Buffalo Niagara International Airport were canceled. Likewise, there are numerous cancellations and delays at the airports in Chicago, Denver and Seattle-Tacoma. The disruption to air services extends from coast to coast, creating significant travel inconveniences.
Mexico also on alert due to the arrival of the cold
The National Meteorological Service of Mexico (SMN) issued a warning about the arrival of arctic air to Mexican territory, where it anticipates probable snowfall and minimum temperatures of up to 10 degrees below zero in the northern region of the country.
The forecast indicates minimum temperatures ranging between -10 and -5 degrees, with the probability of frost in the mountain ranges of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango and Sonora, states located in northern Mexico.
Likewise, a “very cold” environment is expected, with minimum temperatures of -5 to 0 degrees and the possibility of frost in Baja California, State of Mexico, Hidalgo, Nuevo León, Puebla, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz and Zacatecas.
The authorities predict an unusual fall of snow, sleet or rain in areas of Coahuila, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas, states in the northeast of the country that border the United States.
“These conditions will be generated by cold front number 27 and the arctic air mass that drives it, which will travel through the north and northeast of the Mexican Republic; as well as by the polar and subtropical jet streams. The population is recommended to take preventive measures,” the SMN commented in a bulletin.
The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, admitted that there is a “certain emergency” energy due to the cold in the United States, where the icy wave could interrupt the gas supply used by power plants in their country.
“Now we are also in a situation of certain emergency, but acting preventively, due to the problems of winter storms in the United States, which mainly affect the production and distribution of gas, and electrical energy is produced in plants that require gas,” he highlighted in his morning conference, while recalling a similar event during the winter storm of February 2021, when nearly 5 million Mexicans in the north of the country were left without power due to the cold in Texas.
“We are already acting so that the consumer does not suffer, that there are no blackouts and that the price of electricity does not increase, it is something similar, not as intense, and also hopefully it does not worsen, to what happened about two years ago of heavy snowfalls in Texas, which took them without power for about a month, suffering,” he noted.
With AP and EFE
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