A long-duration ice tornado impacting portions of the Southern Plains and also mid-South is expected to last until Wednesday, bringing the capacity for tree damages, power interruptions and unsafe road problems to a number of states.
The big picture: As of Monday evening, about 3.3 million Americans are under an ice tornado warning, with 14.5 million under a winter storm caution, according to the National Weather Solution. A lot more are under various other sorts of winter season weather informs, such as wind cool advisories.
- Freezing air in the Upper Midwest and also Great Plains is headed South, where it’s experiencing dampness along a frontal border, and also bring about this treacherous stretch of icy precipitation.
- NOAA’s Weather condition Prediction Facility forecasted several rounds of freezing precipitation, consisting of light freezing rain as well as sleet from Monday to Wednesday. Ice build-ups may be greater than a quarter of an inch, the forecast facility claimed.
- The ice “will result in tree damages and also power blackouts across the hardest-hit regions,” it included.
- The harmful weather had already led to thousands of trip hold-ups and cancelations by Monday afternoon.
Winter storms and ice freeze U.S.
Winter season tornado as well as ice tornado cautions are in effect across a number of states, from Texas to Arkansas to Kentucky, according to the National Weather Condition Service.
- ” Traveling could be almost difficult in some areas,” the NWS stated.
- Sleet as well as freezing rain has been dropping throughout Texas on Monday. Much of the Dallas-Fort Well worth city location is under a wintertime storm cautioning till Wednesday early morning.
- Moderate to hefty sleet, potentially come with by thunder, is anticipated in both Arkansas as well as Oklahoma, according to the NWS’ Tulsa workplace.
- Freezing rain and sleet are anticipated in Kentucky, also, making “travel treacherous” with Tuesday early morning, per the NWS’ Paducah, Kentucky, office.
An icy mix of rainfall is expected across a minimum of 15 states from Monday to Wednesday, according to the NWS’s Weather condition Forecast Facility.
- More than one-quarter inch of ice buildup is anticipated in states such as Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and also Tennessee, the NWS claimed.
- Memphis is presently under an ice storm advising until midday on Wednesday with “significant topping expected” and also ice accumulations forecasted to reach one-quarter to half inch, according to the NWS Memphis office.
- In western Kentucky, one- to two-tenths of ice buildup is anticipated, according to the NWS’ Paducah workplace.
Temperature levels could strike 20 to 30 degrees below average throughout the Great Plains as well as Intermountain West to start the week, as well, NOAA said. The Dakotas as well as Minnesota might see wind cool temperatures drop to minus-40 °.
- Temperature levels remained in the single figures Monday mid-day in South Dakota cities Sioux Falls, Rapid City and also Aberdeen.
- Minneapolis as well as St. Paul, Minnesota, had single-digit temperature levels, too.
Flight delays and cancellations
Details: By 9 p.m. on Monday, greater than 5,100 flights into, within or out of the USA were postponed, with around 1,100 flights terminated, according to data from FlightAware.
- The majority of the trips were from Southwest Airlines as well as were out of Dallas-Fort Well Worth International and Dallas Love Area airports.
- Southwest Airlines stated vacationers with flights to, from and via some cities in Texas, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and also Oklahoma can rebook trips without surcharges. This applies to flights from Jan. 30 to Feb. 1.
- American Airlines additionally issued a waiver for DFW airport that applies to flights from Jan. 29 to Feb. 2.
Last Updated: 31 January 2023
