Dozens of US states will endure the lowest temperatures they have felt in years as a polar vortex brings ‘life-threatening’ cold next week
According to the National Weather Service (NWS), much of the Lower 48 should expect ‘the coldest air-mass of the season to date’ from Friday to January 24.
Meteorologists predict that temperatures could drop up to 45 degrees below average, engulfing at least 20 states across the Plains, Great Lakes, and the interior Northeast in subzero temperatures.
Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, the Dakotas, Montana, and Wyoming are among the states hit by the polar vortex.
Parts of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, Utah, and Idaho may also see temperatures below zero.
President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration will be held indoors because temperatures in Washington DC are expected to be in the 20s. It’s the first time this has happened in 40 years.
Wind gusts of up to 30 miles per hour will rip through the layers of the hundreds of thousands of MAGA supporters expected to crowd the national mall on Monday.
‘This increases the risk of hypothermia and frostbite on exposed skin. If you’re traveling, bring a cold weather survival kit, the NWS warned.
Temperatures will likely freeze and burst pipes, putting a strain on power grids as people scramble to heat their homes.
Snow and slippery roads are also expected in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast on Sunday, with a wintery mix possible in the Deep South early next week.
Temperatures will fall below freezing in all 48 states, affecting more than 80% of the population.
‘This would be one of the coldest outbreaks in the last ten or fifteen years,’ said winter weather expert Judah Cohen of Atmospheric Environmental Research. ‘It’s drawing air from Siberia.
‘And, you know, that’s consistent with these stretches because the polar vortex stretches from Siberia to the United States.’
According to the NWS, the Rockies, northern Plains, and Upper Midwest will experience minimum wind chills of -30 degrees Fahrenheit or lower Saturday through Tuesday.
Even states along the Gulf Coast and the southern border will experience temperatures 10 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit below average. Only South Florida will be spared the harsh cold.
‘So, if you’re a snowbird and like to escape down to the South, there’s no getting around this. ‘Everyone will feel it,’ FOX Weather Meteorologist Britta Merwin stated.
FOX reported that more than 300 million Americans will experience below-average temperatures by Monday.
However, due to the wind chill, some areas of the country may experience feels-like temperatures as low as -50 F by Monday morning.
Cities that are unfamiliar with such low temperatures should brace themselves for the cold’s potentially fatal consequences, according to Merwin.
From Monday to Thursday next week, temperatures in Asheville, North Carolina, could drop into the low-to-mid teens.
On Monday morning, temperatures in Atlanta, Georgia, may also be in the teens.
People in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee will be especially vulnerable, as many remain homeless following Hurricane Helene’s devastation.
Shivering, slurred speech, slow and shallow breathing, a weak pulse, clumsiness, confusion, and loss of consciousness are all symptoms of hypothermia.
In infants, look for bright red, cold skin, and low energy.
No one should go outside with exposed skin because the extreme cold could cause frostbite in as little as 15 minutes.
Even northern cities are preparing for cold weather.
Emergency officials in New York City declared a ‘Code Blue’ on Thursday.
This warning is issued when the temperature or wind chill is expected to drop to 32 degrees Fahrenheit overnight.
‘Outreach teams will canvass all five boroughs to connect our most vulnerable New Yorkers to shelters,’ NYC Emergency Management wrote on X.
The polar vortex, a large area of low pressure and cold air swirling counterclockwise around the North Pole, will deliver this blast of frigid temperatures.
Typically, its swirling keeps it close to the North Pole, but during the winter, the polar vortex expands further south, causing cold weather outbreaks.
NWS meteorologist Zack Taylor told NPR that this outbreak will be one of the most widespread this season so far.
Temperatures do not appear to be rising anytime soon, with meteorologists expecting the overall weather pattern to remain favorable for more arctic outbreaks until the end of January.
