As Ontarians prepare for their own winter wallop on the weekend, millions of Americans from New Mexico to the Carolinas are bracing for a potentially catastrophic ice storm that could crush trees and power lines and knock out power for days, while extreme snow is forecast to make travel very difficult or nearly impossible in cities like Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York and Boston.
An estimated 100 million people were under some type of winter weather watch, warning or advisory ahead of the storm, which is expected to start today (Friday) and continue through the weekend.
The massive storm system is expected to bring a crippling ice storm from Texas through parts of the South, potentially around a foot (30 cm) of snow from Oklahoma through Washington, D.C.; New York and Boston, and then a final punch of bitterly cold air that could drop wind chills to mius-50 degrees Fahrenheit (minus-46 Celsius) in parts of Minnesota and North Dakota.
Forecasters are warning the damage, especially in areas that get a large amount of ice, could rival a hurricane.
Meanwhile, “Snow amounts could reach a foot or more in the I-95 major cities from D.C. to Boston,” said weather service forecasters on the East Coast, who are increasingly confident the storm will strike the big cities.
The cold punch coming after means it will take a while to thaw out, an especially dangerous prospect in places where ice and snow weighs down tree branches and powerlines and cuts electricity, perhaps for days. Roads and sidewalks could remain icy well into next week.
Freezing temperatures are expected all the way to Florida and lows in the North and Midwest will get about as cold as possible, even down to minus 25 or 30 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 32 to minus 34 degrees Celsius), forecasters said.
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