Winter storms ravage sections of US
Published:Thursday | February 23, 2023 | 12:29 PM
Dangerous winter weather trapped drivers on icy roads, knocked out power to hundreds of thousands and grounded multiple flights from California through the northern Plains on Thursday.
For the first time since 1989, the National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning through Saturday for Southern California mountains.
Forecasters predicted “multiple rounds of new snowfall” with accumulations of up to 3 to 5 feet (0.91 to 1.5 metres) for the Sierra Nevada region.
Rare snow is also expected over some lower foothills and valley areas near the Pacific Coast, the weather service said, “given the depth of cold air that has infiltrated the West.”
The intense moisture in the air also creates an increased risk of flash flooding through Saturday, forecasters said.
Some coastal areas could see waves as high as 10 to 14 feet (3 to 4 metres) through Thursday, forecasters said.
The series of storms sowed chaos from coast to coast.
At one point Wednesday, more than 65 million people in more than two dozen states were under weather alerts.
The weather service said temperatures in some parts of the upper Midwest could reach 40 degrees below average, while high readings on Thursday in the mid-Atlantic and Southeast could get to 40 degrees above average.
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