A winter storm with temperatures as low as -40 degrees Celsius on Thursday wreaked havoc on Christmas travel across the United States, with thousands of flight cancellations and highway closures.
Heavy snow and winds scuttled holiday plans during one of the busiest holiday seasons of the year, as a massive cold front from the Arctic hit the United States and freezing temperatures gripped the center of the country.
Tens of millions of people were warned about the winter storm. Meteorologists said the frost was so severe in places that anyone stepping outside was at risk of freezing within minutes.
“This is not a childish snow day. This is serious business,” US President Joe Biden told reporters.
Snowfall and dangerous road conditions have hit the United States as 100 million Americans were expected to take road trips before the holidays, the American Automobile Association said.
Interstate I-90, which runs through the south of the state, was closed in South Dakota and authorities said it would not reopen until Friday.
Flight tracking website Flightaware.com showed more than 22,000 flights were delayed on Thursday, while 5,500 were canceled altogether. Many of these flights were into Chicago O’Hare and Denver International Airports.
Travel during the holiday season was previously expected to be close to pre-pandemic levels and the busiest day would be Thursday, three days before Christmas.
The National Weather Service has warned that snow flurries lasting one to two hours have already occurred or are forecast from the US Central Plains to the mid-Atlantic coast and northeastern US.
Montana meteorologists said they expected the coldest night on Thursday, with temperatures as low as -40 degrees Celsius and wind chills as low as -51 degrees.
The governors of New York and several other states have declared a state of emergency, warning of the possibility of heavy snow and rain, high winds, coastal and lake flooding, extremely cold temperatures with winds and power outages.
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