Winter Storm Fern has plunged vast swathes of the United States into a deep freeze, creating widespread travel chaos and leaving hundreds of thousands of households without electricity as temperatures dive far below seasonal averages. The severe weather system, which first struck the South, Midwest, and Great Plains on Saturday afternoon, is now advancing relentlessly towards the Northeast, promising to deliver a powerful blizzard to the Eastern Seaboard.
Forecast Predicts Historic Snowfall Totals
According to the latest forecast from The Weather Channel, Boston and a significant portion of Massachusetts are bracing for an extraordinary accumulation of up to 18 inches of snow. New York City is projected to receive approximately 11 inches, while states including Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Maine anticipate totals ranging from five to a formidable 18 inches. This immense storm system spans a staggering 2,000-mile path from New Mexico to Maine, placing around 220 million Americans directly in its trajectory.
States of Emergency Declared Amid Widespread Alerts
The scale of the disruption is unprecedented, with over half of the nation now under an official winter weather alert. This encompasses 37 states, and by Saturday night, at least 21 had declared a state of emergency to mobilise resources and coordinate response efforts. The hazardous conditions have severely impacted air travel, with data from FlightAware revealing that one in every four flights has been cancelled this weekend.
The statistics are stark: nearly 10,000 flights scheduled for Sunday were scrapped, over 4,500 were cancelled on Saturday, and more than 1,500 Monday flights have already been called off. The ripple effect of these cancellations has left countless travellers stranded at airports across the country, with images emerging of deserted terminals like Reagan Washington National Airport.
Power Grid Buckles Under Icy Onslaught
The storm's fury has crippled power infrastructure, plunging homes into darkness and cold. Live tracking data from PowerOutage.us indicated that more than 173,000 families were without electricity late on Saturday night. Louisiana bore the brunt initially, with over 70,000 homes experiencing outages. Texas faced similar turmoil, with almost 50,000 households losing power amid an active Winter Storm Warning from the National Weather Service.
In New Mexico, the situation became so perilous for repair crews that one electric company was forced to suspend restoration efforts overnight. The Otero County Electric Cooperative reported that approximately 6,000 of its 21,000 customers were without power on Saturday afternoon. The company cited dangerous conditions, including trees snapping under heavy snowfall and endangering linemen, as the reason for halting work.
Southern and Midwestern Cities Blanketed in Snow
From the South to the Midwest, cities recorded significant snowfall totals. Little Rock, Arkansas, was blanketed with almost 8 inches of snow, while Beloit, Kansas, saw 7 inches, and Memphis, Tennessee, received 3.5 inches. Nashville experienced a rare and substantial coating, with joyful scenes of schoolchildren sledding down the hill in front of the state Capitol building capturing a brief moment of levity amidst the severe conditions.
Bitter Cold and Tragic Consequences
Temperatures across the nation are running 10 to 40 degrees below average, with wind chills in the Northern Plains plummeting to a life-threatening -50 degrees Fahrenheit overnight. The East Coast has already begun to feel this bitter cold, with Saturday temperatures dropping into the teens. The frigid conditions are forecast to persist and intensify until at least Wednesday, with parts of upstate New York likely to see lows of -14F.
Tragically, the extreme weather has already been linked to loss of life. Authorities in New York City confirmed that three individuals were found dead outdoors on Saturday as temperatures plunged. The victims included a 67-year-old man discovered on a Manhattan sidewalk, with police believing all three deaths were weather-related. In response to the crisis, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani had previously issued a Code Blue alert to enhance support for homeless individuals seeking shelter.
Transportation Shutdowns and Federal Response
In anticipation of the storm's peak, New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill announced the temporary suspension of public transit and the implementation of travel restrictions for most of Sunday, potentially extending into Monday. On a federal level, coordination is underway, with the Department of Homeland Security activating its National Response Coordination Center and Regional Coordination Centers to support state and local officials.
Residents across the affected 2,000-mile corridor have been urgently advised by officials at all levels of government to remain indoors, avoid unnecessary travel, and ensure they have adequate supplies of food, water, and essential medications. As Winter Storm Fern continues its historic sweep across the continent, the nation remains on high alert, grappling with a profound weather event that has disrupted daily life for millions.
