Tens of thousands of flights have been disrupted by a deadly winter storm slamming the United States, leaving at least 16 dead and several others injured and forcing highway shutdowns.
AccuWeather is wrapping up live coverage of the severe winter storm that produced historic snowfall in Buffalo, massive power outages across the country and major impacts on holiday travel. For additional coverage, stream AccuWeather NOW anytime on our website. Stay up to date on the latest weather in your area by downloading the AccuWeather mobile app and visiting AccuWeather.com. And keep an eye on weather news and forecasts by following AccuWeather on:
Christmas gift deliveries scheduled for the holiday weekend have hit a snag due to the treacherous conditions across the United States. Several key shipping companies, such as FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service, alerted customers that the winter storm gripping the country was disrupting operations in several areas. Operations in Tennessee, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois and the Dakotas were among the impacted. Satish Jindel, founder of consultancy ShipMatrix, told Reuters that air network shutdowns and road closures, among other weather-related disruptions, could impact 10-15% of the millions of packages scheduled for Saturday delivery. Both FedEx and UPS told Reuters that contingency plans are in place if severe weather stops cargo planes or delivery trucks.
FedEx is among the key shipping companies in the United States that has had operations disrupted by the perilous winter storm. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Intense wind gusts were the soundtrack to a video taken in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area Friday, as icicles began to form at Lake Weatherford, roughly 25 miles west of downtown Fort Worth. The sharp visual echoed the frigid conditions felt throughout Texas over the past several days, including in Dallas, where a hard freeze warning went into effect at 6 p.m. local time Thursday. The AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature for the city plummeted to less than 10 degrees Fahrenheit below zero Friday morning, with wind gusts blowing at over 40 mph. Other Texas hubs were impacted as well, such as Houston, which also had a subzero RealFeel® on Friday morning. Power outages in the state were relatively low as of Saturday morning, with just over 16,000 customers impacted.
Illustrating dangerously cold weather in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Chad Casey captured this video of intense icicles along Lake Weatherford.
Travelers on both ends of the United States expressed their frustrations with delays at multiple airports overnight, as flight delays and cancellations ran amok at the start of the Christmas holiday weekend. At Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, at least 16 flights were stranded on the tarmac during Saturday overnight hours, with multiple United Airlines passengers reportedly stuck on their planes for three hours. On the other side of the country, passengers were forced off of a Southwest Airlines flight at Denver International Airport after the flight’s pilot had a shift end before takeoff. Another firsthand account from Denver stated that many employees left the airport as multiple flights were stranded on the tarmac. According to flight tracking website FlightAware, over 500 flights in Denver were canceled Friday, with nearly 1,000 more delayed.
Travelers queue up to pass through the south security checkpoint in Denver International Airport after a winter storm swept over the country packing snow combined with Arctic cold, which created chaos for people trying to reach their destinations before the Christmas holiday, Friday, Dec. 23, 2022, in Denver. Forecasters predict that warmer weather will be on tap for the week ahead. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
The continued winter woes blasting Buffalo this week reached historic proportions Friday. The day’s total snowfall ended at a record of 22.3 inches in the city, nearly doubling up the previous daily maximum snowfall record of 12.6 inches set in 1976. Precipitation across the board fell in historical totals, as Friday’s rainfall accumulation in the city of 1.98 inches broke the previous daily maximum rainfall record of 1.73, set in 1878. Blizzard conditions fell Saturday morning just outside Buffalo in portions of the Niagara frontier, due to a combination of a heavy snow band and winds gusting to 55 mph, setting visibility at zero. The conditions made travel impossible for portions of the frontier, particularly a 10-15 mile-wide band across the Buffalo northtowns and the city of Niagara Falls.
A member of the media battles snow and ice as Lake Erie waters wash over the shoreline on Dec. 23, 2022, in Hamburg, New York. The Buffalo suburb and surrounding area are expecting wind gusts over 70 mph, impacting homes and businesses throughout the holiday weekend. (Photo by John Normile/Getty Images)
This week’s severe winter conditions across the United States have been costly, leaving at least 16 dead as of Saturday afternoon. Adding to the total, the Tennessee Department of Health confirmed one storm-related fatality Friday, while Wisconsin State Patrol reported one fatal crash due to the weather on Thursday. Other reported deaths include four in Ohio as a result of weather-related auto accidents, three in Kansas due to traffic accidents, three in Kentucky, one in Oklahoma, three in Erie County, New York, and one in Missouri when a caravan slid off an icy road and into a frozen creek.
Holiday travel continued to be a nightmare for many as the Christmas weekend kicked off Friday, with over 11,000 flight delays and nearly 6,000 flight cancellations within the United States during the day. According to FlightAware, the largest amount of cancellations took place at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, with 363 outgoing and 359 incoming flights cancelled Friday for a total of 722. Over 300 cancellations of outgoing flights were also reported at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, which also had nearly 1,000 delays on Friday. Other trouble spots Friday were Denver International (527 total cancellations), LaGuardia Airport in Queens, New York (442 cancellations), and Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County (370 cancellations). Across the U.S., over 1,500 cancellations and over 1,500 delays were already reported as of 8 a.m. EST Saturday, including another 151 cancellations at Chicago O’Hare.
The harrowing situation in the greater Buffalo area has become deadly, as two fatalities were announced Saturday morning by Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz. The fatalities both occurred in Cheektowaga, about 7 miles east of downtown Buffalo, and were categorized as “emergency medical events that responders could not get to.” Poloncarz stated on his Twitter page Saturday that Erie County is “preparing to encounter more fatalities” as search and rescue missions continue throughout the day. Members of the National Guard were out in Erie County Saturday morning working to get people out of stranded cars, targeting the hardest-hit areas including the city of Buffalo and the northtowns. During Friday and overnight Saturday, local first responders and emergency equipment were unable to reach the hard-hit places, including Buffalo, unable to “even go a few blocks” according to Poloncarz. “Getting first responders back online is our top priority,” he noted. The winter storm death toll stands at 13.
A man braves sub zero temperatures with heavy winds as he uses a snowblower Friday, Dec. 23, 2022, in Fox Point, Wis. Winter weather is blanketing the U.S. as a massive storm sent temperatures crashing and created whiteout conditions. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Power outages remained at staggering numbers across the United States Saturday morning, leaving over a million customers in the dark as the Christmas weekend began. According to PowerOutage.US, outages topped 1.375 million at 7 a.m. EST, hitting primarily on the eastern coastline. The state of Maine has been pummeled the most by outages per capita, as 239,972 out of 847,479 tracked customers had their power cut early Saturday. In Tennessee, nearly 300,000 tracked customers were experiencing outages, due in part to a strain on the Tennessee Valley Authority’s power generation facilities from the duration of frigid conditions. All power distributors under the TVA were required to drop 10 percent of their electricity load, with customers under providers such as Nashville Electric Service expected to lose power in 10-minute increments each hour until the power load stabilizes. Tennessee’s neighbor to the east, North Carolina, also experienced mass outages as of Saturday morning, with 242,931 tracked customers going without power. Over 50,000 outages were added to the national total in New Hampshire, New York, Virginia and Alabama.
The Mile High City finally broke out of negative temperatures on Friday as the city warmed up to positive numbers for the first time in nearly 2 full days. Denver initially dipped below zero at 5 p.m. MST on Wednesday, where it continued to plummet. By Thursday morning, temperatures dipped to -24 degrees, the coldest the city had experienced since 1990. At 11 a.m. MST on Friday, Denver ended the negative temperature streak. High temperatures in the city reached 11 degrees on Friday before falling back into the negatives by 4 p.m. local time. The most consecutive hours below zero Denver experienced was when the city went 115 consecutive hours in the negatives between Dec. 20 and Dec. 24, 1983.
Eleven NFL games will take place on Saturday, and thousands of fans attending games across the Midwest and Northeast may have to endure Arctic air to cheer on their favorite team in person. Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh commented on the forecast on Thursday, saying that the weather will “definitely be a factor” when they host the Atlanta Falcons on Saturday afternoon. Temperatures will be in the single digits for multiple matchups, including the Buffalo Bills playing against the Chicago Bears, the Las Vegas Raiders traveling to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers and the New Orlean Saints traveling to Cleveland to face off against the Browns. The latter could be the coldest matchup of the weekend with AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures more than 20 degrees below zero throughout the entire game.
The Green Bay Packers are known for hosting some of the coldest games in NFL history, earning their home field the nickname of the frozen tundra. The Ice Bowl is one of the most famous football games in history with the mercury registering 15 degrees below zero when they hosted the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL championship game. However, the Packers will be basking in the warmth this weekend as they fly to Miami to play against the Dolphins on Christmas day.
With downright frigid air moving into the Northeast, as well as a strong, even locally damaging wind directed out of the west, the Great Lakes have helped produce massive amounts of snow and blizzard conditions in Buffalo and Watertown, New York, as well as much of Michigan. However, those aren't the only bodies of water leading to accumulating snow in the region.
Several hundred miles to the east, a similar process is ongoing just off the Atlantic coast and near Long Island Sound. With cold wind being directed over the much warmer ocean waters, ocean-effect snow has developed. Typically, the westerly winds steer this snow harmlessly offshore, however with the wind blowing in just the right direction, snow has been reported in portions of coastal Rhode Island, southeast Massachusetts, and Down East Maine. In these areas, snow should amount to perhaps an inch or two, rather than the multiple feet of snow seen near the Great Lakes. However, any snow that falls will have no trouble sticking with such low temperatures, and even a small amount of snow can lead to slippery conditions.
Rabbit Kettle, Northwest Territories, became home of the coldest temperature recorded in Canada during the month of December in over 40 years on Friday. The location accomplished this freezing milestone when it recorded an astonishing reading of 53.4 degrees C below zero (64 F below zero). The last time Canada recorded a temperature this low in December was when Stewart Crossing, Yukon, reported a 55 degrees C below zero (67 F below zero) temperature in December 1980. Rabbit Kettle is located in the southwestern Northwest Territories and just to the east of Tungsten, NT, which is along the Yukon border.
The temperature at the National Weather Service (NWS) office in Nashville, Tennessee, dropped to 1 degree F below zero Friday morning. Although the temperature doesn’t break the record low for that date -- which was 8 degrees F below zero set back in 1989 -- it is the first time temperatures have dropped below freezing in more than 25 years. The last time Nashville dropped below freezing was on Feb. 5, 1996. Combined with the windy weather, AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures are making it feel even colder than what the thermometer is reading. As of 8 a.m. local time, the AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature was 21 degrees F below zero in Nashville. According to AccuWeather forecasters, the temperature is expected to warm up to 12 degrees F with an AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature of 11 below zero Friday afternoon.
High wind gusts across the Buffalo area led to an intense scene capture by extreme meteorologist Reed Timmer on Friday afternoon. Large snow flakes could be seen flying alongside the extreme wind inside a blizzard at Buffalo Naval Park. Roads were completely hidden behind the sheet of snow and signs were covered in ice. Storm surge from the event caused debris to pile up at the Naval Park. "You can see the hall mark under the debris, logs as well. Giant logs," Timmer reported as icicles covered his eyebrows. Timmer posted on his Twitter that the blizzard he was witnessing in Buffalo was a once-in-a-generation blizzard.
Wind gusts in Buffalo have exceeded 70 mph multiple times throughout the day on Friday, with the highest being a 72.5 mph gust just before 10 a.m. EST. Temperatures in Buffalo began falling just after 7 a.m. EST and were already in the single digits before sunset.
Power outages continue to be a concern across the country on Friday as a large winter storm encompassed the midwest and northeast. As of Friday evening, more than 540,000 customers were without power in New England and over 350,000 were without power in the Mid-Atlantic. Maine topped the list of power outages with over 250,000 customers in the dark as of 8 p.m. EST. To the west of Maine, New Hampshire recorded over 100,000 customers with power loss. Several other states have suffered over 70,000 power outages such as New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Virginia. Outages stretched to the south and included over 10,000 customers in South Carolina and Tennessee.
Accuweather RealFeel® temperatures across Pennsylvania are some of the lowest in the country. At 8:30 p.m. EST, DuBois, Pennsylvania, was experiencing a RealFeel® of -43 degrees. In southern Pennsylvania, RealFeel® temperatures dipped to -47 degrees in Johnstown. With temperatures falling to dangerous levels and power outages increasing, many will be turning to generators to keep themselves safe. But it is important to understand the risks that come with using one, such as picking a safe location that is 15 feet away from any window or doors and operating them outside only to prevent dangerous amounts of carbon monoxide.
With a large swath of the country under wind chill and cold related weather alerts, many outdoor activities should be moved indoors, including eating. Very chilly conditions made for a pasta dish to become frozen in place with a fork appearing as if it was levitating in mid-air. The wet pasta was chilled so quickly when placed outdoors that it was able to be propped up to give this unique appearance. Frost coated the edges of the plate and despite attempts, the fork was unable to be separated from the dish while outside. The pasta dish was created in Bellwood, Pennsylvania, where temperatures were -2 degrees and the AccuWeather RealFeel® was at -20 degrees.
Minnesota Governor Tim Waltz declared a peacetime emergency as a result of the powerful winter storm that impacted the state. The treacherous weather resulted in several stranded vehicles which put lives and property at risk, according to an executive order by Gov. Walz. The Minnesota National Guard has been called to assist with the rescue efforts of the stranded motorists. "The remainder of this Executive Order, including the activation of the Minnesota National Guard, remains in effect until the emergency conditions caused by the winter storm subside or Dec. 30, 2022, whichever occurs first," the executive order read.
In response to the dangerous winter weather conditions impacting the state, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer activated the State Emergency Operations Center. The activation will help provide additional state resources to local communities as necessary, according to Mid-Michigan Now. The emergency went into effect at 1 p.m. on Friday. “By taking this next step to activate the State Emergency Operations Center, we are making sure that our response is coordinated and that resources are available to impacted communities," Gov. Whitmer said. Blizzard conditions across the state have resulted in several crashes and power outages. As of 5:30 p.m. EST, more than 23,000 customers were without power in Michigan, according to PowerOutage.US.
Friday brought more travel nightmares for folks hoping to fly ahead of Christmas weekend from Portland, Oregon, to Portland, Maine. Nearly 5,000 flights in the United States were canceled and another 7,800 were delayed, according to FlightAware. The website’s “Misery Map” showed that Seattle, Denver, Chicago, Boston and New York City were among some of the worst travel hubs to fly in and out of on Friday.
However, it wasn’t all bad news, especially at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport where weather conditions were better than Thursday. “We are very excited. We’re heading somewhere in the sun, and somewhere fun,” Chicago resident Lindy Resnick told AccuWeather National Reporter Emmy Victor on Friday at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. Alex Boler arrived in Chicago from Hawaii, and although the weather was drastically different, he told Victor that he was able to make it home before the holidays.
Travelers arrive at Terminal 3 at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Visibility has dropped to near-zero in Buffalo, New York, as bitterly cold winds fuel an intense band of lake-effect snow. “The core of the lake-effect snow band has now moved into downtown Buffalo,” Extreme Meteorologist Reed Timmer said as he stood out in the elements. “Prolific lake-effect snow happening here,” he said, adding that it could be “one of the worst blizzards to ever hit the Buffalo area.” Visibility in the city has been below one-quarter of a mile since 8:47 a.m. EST Friday, with Buffalo Niagara International Airport occasionally reporting zero visibility amid heavy snow. If the snow wasn’t enough to deter people from heading outside, AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures are 25 degrees below zero and could occasionally dip lower through Friday night.
A pileup involving multiple tractor trailers has forced officials to shut down the Ohio Turnpike near Sandusky, Ohio. Numerous injuries have been reported, but the exact number of injuries is still unknown. Officials spoke with WTVG, a news station based out of Toledo, Ohio, and said that it will take a while to clear the highway and that there are many troopers and first responders at the scene of the crash. It is unclear what caused the pileup, but visibility was limited due to the ongoing bomb cyclone. People involved in the crash and first responders on the scene must battle the elements while assessing the damage. As of 3 p.m. EST Friday, the temperature in Sandusky was 2 degrees below zero with an AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature of 44 degrees below zero.
A pileup that occured on the Ohio Turnpike near Sandusky, Ohio, on Friday amid blustery conditions. (Twitter/ @mikewaldron115)
Two electricity providers in Tennessee are asking customers to reduce power usage to ensure the power grid remains stable. MLGW, a utility company for Memphis and Shelby County, Tennessee, issued a statement saying they will be required to reduce the electrical load by 5 and 10%. “This is necessary to avoid major outages,” the company said in a statement. “Customers are asked to cooperate in reducing power usage during this critical situation.”
The Tennessee Vally Authority, which serves 10 million people in the Tennessee Valley, issued a similar statement. “We are asking businesses and the public to help by immediately reducing electric power use as much as possible without sacrificing safety,” the company said. “It is a necessary step to prevent far greater power interruptions affecting the entire area.”
When the companies issued these statements, the temperatures across Tennessee were in the single digits, including 4 F in Nashville. AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures across the state were as much as 20 degrees lower than the actual temperature, including a RealFeel® Temperature of 25 degrees below zero in Crossville, Tennessee.
Dreaming of a white Christmas? AccuWeather forecasters say that hopes may not be dashed across a large area of the country this year. As of Dec. 23, the area of the United States covered by snow stands at 53.7%. That’s more than any other year on record for the date, since record-keeping began by the National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensor in 2003. The deep freeze gripping the eastern two-thirds of the nation into the holiday weekend is likely to keep a lot of that snow in place, and some areas, including locations downwind of the Great Lakes like Buffalo face even more powder — feet of it, in fact, leading up to Christmas.
Powerful winds have downed tree limbs and power lines, knocking out electricity to more than 1.5 million households and businesses. Most of the outages are concentrated in North Carolina, which has about 187,000 without service, and other parts of the South, according to tracking site PowerOutage.us.
Some of the figures as of 1:30 p.m. EST:
• Virginia comes in after North Carolina with more than 145,000 outages.
• Tennessee - 143,000+
• Maine - 114,000+
• New York - 104,000+
AccuWeather meteorologist Dean DeVore warns of high winds leading to a deep freeze event to follow after the snow in the north-central and northeastern United States.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is urging people to stay off the roads and remain indoors as sub-zero air blasts the Bluegrass State. “We have reports of a third fatality on our roads,” Beshear tweeted. “Please stay home and stay safe.” One accident Friday morning shut down Interstate 71 between Verona and Glencoe, Kentucky, located southwest of Cincinnati. Beshear said that some people who were stranded on the highway due to the accident elected to stay in their vehicles, while other motorists were being transported to shelters. As of 12:35 p.m. EST Friday, the warmest spot in the state was Greenville, located in western Kentucky, with a temperature of 2 F, but many locations across the state were experiencing temperatures at or below zero. Frigid winds were making it feel significantly colder with AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures as low as 39 degrees below zero.
So far, at least eight people have died as a result of storm-related crashes in Kentucky, Oklahoma and Kansas, according to officials.
A major pileup involving at least nine tractor trailer trucks and other vehicles shut down Interstate 94 in Watervliet, Michigan, Friday morning. It was not immediately clear whether anyone was seriously injured. At least 15 vehicles were involved in the accident just south of Grand Rapids in Berrien County. It was one of many multiple collisions Michigan State Police responded to along I-94 due to icy roads and “sudden white-out conditions,” authorities said. Police also reported several semi-trucks had jack-knifed on Interstate 96 and other highways.
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