The United States faces a violent storm as Christmas approaches
Temperatures have dropped and Americans are facing heavy snowfall and blizzards, like on this road in North Liberty, Iowa, on Thursday, December 22.
© Joseph Cress/AP
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
The effects of an icy storm like we only see “
once in a generation
” have been felt since Thursday, December 22, in much of the United States.
Authorities urge vigilance as thousands of Americans prepare to travel for Christmas.
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Striking images of blizzards, impressive snowfalls, planes grounded… From the north of the country to Texas, in the south, Americans will spend Christmas in freezing cold.
Extremely low temperatures are expected to continue throughout the Christmas weekend.
According to the national weather service, the National Weather Service (NWS), the power of this cold wave makes it called a "
storm that occurs only once in a generation
".
The Midwest and the Great Lakes region (towards Chicago) are among the areas most affected by this violent storm, where temperatures could reach as low as -55°C.
The polar gusts will blow up to 80 km/h and risk causing possible tree falls and power cuts.
So US President Joe Biden urged him, “
Please take this storm extremely seriously
.”
"
I encourage everyone (...) to listen to the warnings at the local level
," he added.
Several states have already declared a state of emergency, such as Oklahoma, Kentucky, Georgia or North Carolina.
Closed roads and canceled flights
The authorities have warned: the conditions are extremely dangerous to move around.
However, millions of Americans have to take the road or go to the airport for the holiday season.
But roads are blanketed in snow across the country.
Many accidents have already been reported, in particular because of the zero visibility due to the blizzard.
I-90, a major highway crossing the north of the country, had to be closed in the state of South Dakota and authorities have warned that it will not reopen until Friday, December 23.
As of Thursday, Dec. 22, more than 5,500 flights were canceled and 24,000 were delayed, according to flight tracking site FlightAware.
Canada also affected
Canada is also expecting "
unusually low temperatures for the season
" as well as heavy snowfall and possible freezing rain in some areas.
So the authorities have, for example, encouraged residents of Quebec to "
prepare emergency plans and bring kits containing drinking water, food, medicine, a first aid kit and a flashlight
" .
(
With
AFP)
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