Memphis residents were urged to boil water and New Yorkers were warned that roads could be covered in dangerous black ice this weekend as extreme cold weather sweeps through the regions.
Storms lashed the Pacific Northwest, Midwest, Plains, South and Northeast with frigid temperatures, heavy snow, ice storms, freezing rain and high winds. Heavier than expected snow fell in New York City, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., on Friday.
More bitterly cold air seeped into Canada's Midwest on Friday. Several states were under a warning as meteorologists warned that wind chills as low as minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 34 degrees Celsius) could be common through Sunday morning.
As the winds blow, temperatures are expected to drop to minus 15 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 26 degrees Celsius) in large parts of Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky and Kansas, the National Weather Service forecast.
The weekend's cold weather comes after two weeks of storms that killed at least 55 people across the country, many from hypothermia or road accidents.
Tennessee alone recorded 19 deaths. They included a 25-year-old man who was found dead on the floor of a mobile home in Lewisburg after the heater flipped over and went out, said Bob Johnson, chief deputy for the Marshall County Sheriff's Office.
“There was ice on the walls there,” Johnson said.
Days of cold snap broke many water pipes in Memphis, Tennessee, dropping water pressure throughout the city. Memphis Light, Gas & Water on Friday urged all of its more than 400,000 residents to boil water for drinking, brushing teeth or using bottled supplies.
It was not clear how long the advice would remain in effect. While about 50 ruptures have been repaired, Utilities Chief Doug McGuinn warned that new leaks could emerge.
The dramatic decline in blood donations, linked in part to the weather, led Blood Assurance to recommend that more than 70 hospitals in five states suspend elective surgeries through Wednesday to allow inventory to be rebuilt by the Chattanooga, Tenn.-based organization.
In West Virginia, advisories and warnings were issued Saturday due to continuing severe weather. The weather service said some areas could see up to 4 inches (10 centimeters) of additional snow with wind gusts of up to 40 mph (64 kph) and wind chills dropping temperatures to 20 below zero ( minus 29 degrees Celsius).
The West Virginia Legislature left after a short session Friday because not enough lawmakers could cross snow-covered highways to the Capitol to vote on bills.
In Washington, DC, snow fell quietly and the streets surrounding the US Capitol building remained silent. Schools closed for the second time in a week, and the federal government was delayed by two hours. However, President Joe Biden still welcomed mayors from across the country to the White House for the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
In Buffalo, New York, the snow accumulated on the lake finally moved after parts of the city and some suburbs were buried under a layer of snow five feet thick in five days. The Buffalo Bills on Friday renewed their appeal for snow shovels, offering $20 an hour to help dig Highmark Stadium before Sunday's playoff game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Michigan City, Indiana, received 17 inches (43 cm) of lake-shaped snow on Friday. The snow later eased as the low-pressure system moved away, but the weather service warned that “cold air was wrapping behind it,” urging drivers to watch out for patches of slick, treacherous black ice.
On the West Coast, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotick declared a statewide emergency in the wake of the deadly ice storms, and the weather service reported that temperatures on Friday were finally above freezing in most areas and that ground snow and ice would begin to slowly melt.
More freezing rain is expected Saturday in the Columbia River Gorge and the area is expected to remain near or below freezing through at least Sunday night. The National Weather Service warned that trees and power lines already covered in ice could collapse if more falls.
“Stay safe out there over the next few days as our area tries to thaw,” the weather service said. “Falling ice chunks will still pose a hazard as well.”
Thousands have been without power since last weekend in parts of Oregon's Willamette Valley due to storm damage. Despite the work of repair crews, more than 63,000 customers remained without power in the state as of Friday evening, according to poweroutage.us.
The National Weather Service said there could be a thaw next week, with forecasts calling for above-average temperatures across almost all parts of the country.
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Associated Press journalists Jonathan Mathis and Christine M. Hall in Nashville, Tennessee, Claire Rush in Portland, Oregon, Carolyn Thompson in Buffalo, New York, Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, and Colleen Long in Washington contributed.
