A powerful Arctic winter storm swept across the US and Canada leaving over 6.5 lakh people without power in several states. The storm has brought damaging winds and freezing temperatures, BBC News reported.
According to BBC news, much of Canada and the US are under winter weather alerts that stretch from coast-to-coast and as far south as the US-Mexico border while major airports have cancelled thousands of flights as the storm intensifies.
As of Friday morning, thousands of people from Texas to Maine were left in the dark, as the intense winds brought damage to power lines across the eastern US. Georgia, where a state of emergency has been declared, is the most affected with more than 1 lakh people left without power.
Meanwhile, the provinces of Quebec and Ontario in Canada are bracing for winter storm conditions that have already left more than 160,000 households without power on Friday. Several school boards in Ontario, including Toronto, have cancelled classes.
This storm is set to bring the iciest Christmas in decades, say forecasters, even affecting the sunshine state of Florida.
The National Weather Service (NWS) said temperatures of -50F (-45C) and -70F were possible by the end of this week in some parts of the country.
They warned that even in major metro areas, like the city of Des Moines, Iowa, frostbite will be a major danger.
Meteorologists say the winter storm could become a “bomb cyclone” by Friday. Bomb cyclone is a term given to an explosive storm that intensifies rapidly, with its central air pressure dropping by at least 24 millibars in 24 hours.
“This is not like a snow day, when you were a kid, this is serious stuff,” President Joe Biden said in a White House briefing on Thursday.