The conditions exposed 60% of the US population – more than 200 million people – to some sort of winter weather advisory or warning.
The US National Weather Service’s map “depicts one of the greatest extents of winter weather warnings and advisories ever”, forecasters said.
According to the tracking website FlightAware, more than 3,400 flights inside, into, or out of the US were cancelled on Friday, adding to the chaos as people try to get home for the holidays. Runways were shut down at a few airports, including Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
On Friday morning, there were at least 1.4 million houses and businesses without electricity.
From border to border, the enormous storm was present.
Beginning at 9am on Friday, WestJet in Canada cancelled every flight at Toronto Pearson International Airport. And while they awaited the US Supreme Court's judgement on whether and when to lift pandemic-era limits that bar them from obtaining asylum, migrants in Mexico waited near the US border in exceptionally frigid weather.
Following a briefing from government officials, US President Joe Biden said in the Oval Office, "This is not like a snow day when you were a kid." This is serious business.
The bomb cyclone, which occurs when atmospheric pressure falls dramatically during a powerful storm, is anticipated to form close to the Great Lakes. That will cause blizzard-like conditions, which include strong gusts and snowfall.
Additionally, the weather increased demand for homeless shelters, particularly in Detroit, where some shelters were full on Thursday.
Additionally, four emergency shelters were opened in Portland, Oregon.
Dangerous cold temperatures & winds will continue to affect and spread eastward through the day from the Rockies, the south, Midwest, Great Lakes & advancing across the eastern seaboard. This graphic is the forecast apparent temperature at 1 PM EST today. https://t.co/VyWINDk3xP pic.twitter.com/trOqw6c6Lt
— National Weather Service (@NWS) December 23, 2022
Speaking on behalf of her organisation, the Union Gospel Mission, Courtney Dodds said teams had been going out to attempt to convince people to seek shelter.
Because of the cold, she added, "it may be incredibly simple for folks to nod off and fall asleep and end up dying."
Forecasters in the notoriously snowy Buffalo, New York, area warned of a "once-in-a-generation storm" due to the significant lake-effect snowfall, 65 mph wind gusts, whiteouts, and possibility for widespread power disruptions.
While the NHL hockey league postponed the Buffalo Sabres' home game versus the Tampa Bay Lightning, Mayor Byron Brown urged residents to stay at home.
Denver, also no stranger to winter storms, was the coldest it has been in 32 years on Thursday, when the temperature dropped to minus 31C in the morning at the airport.
