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Ohio has been added to the list of states declaring emergencies. Governor Mike DeWine called for a state of emergency in Ohio due to “damaging and dangerous” weather conditions.
“I’m proactively declaring a state of emergency in Ohio due to the damaging and dangerous conditions Winter Storm Fern is expected to bring to our state this weekend,” he wrote on X. “I continue to encourage everyone to stay home unless it’s absolutely necessary to be out.”
Oklahoma is currently in the middle of the first of two waves of the winter storm, as the second wave is set to move into the state later Saturday night. The winter storm warning that was issued for almost the entirety of Oklahoma will remain in effect until noon Sunday. Here are a few images of the snow-covered state:
An aerial view of snowfall in downtown Oklahoma City on Saturday. Photograph: Alonzo Adams/APA man carries buckets of snow in the parking lot of the tire shop where he works. Photograph: Nick Oxford/ReutersInterstate 40 in downtown Oklahoma City. Photograph: Alonzo Adams/APShannon White and JP Davis, who are both unhoused, walk to a day shelter in Oklahoma City. Photograph: Nick Oxford/ReutersShare
Updated at 14.03 EST
DC expects at least 9in of snow tonight, says mayor
Washington DC’s mayor, Muriel Bowser, wrote on X: “Snow is coming tonight” in the region.
“We’re expecting at least 9’ of snow, followed by extreme cold weather through the end of next week,” she added. “Our teams are working to keep residents safe, warm, and inside all weekend long – for neighbors in need of shelter, call: (202) 399-7093.”
Yesterday, the mayor declared a state of emergency in DC in anticipation of the storm.
Updated at 14.01 EST
The severe cold weather has created unsafe driving conditions on many roads throughout the midwest and southern US today. Sheets of ice are currently coating several streets and highways, causing increasing risk to drivers.
Even after the ice has been cleared away, it often quickly comes back due to precipitation and freezing temperatures. Officials are urging people to stay off the roads. Sgt Ellis from the Tennessee highway patrol posted a video on social media demonstrating the dangerous conditions.
Ellis summed up his advice succinctly: “It’s not the problem of going on this – it’s stopping. Please stay at home.”
Updated at 14.00 EST
Electric grid operators have stepped up precautions to avoid rotating blackouts as frigid weather hitting half of the country’s population stressed their operations.
The PJM Interconnection, the largest US regional grid that serves 67 million people in the east and mid-Atlantic, reported temporary spikes in spot wholesale electricity prices that soared above $3,000 per megawatt hour on Saturday morning from earlier levels of less than $200 per MWh.
Entergy, the power-production company that generates and distributes electricity to 3 million customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, says they have more than 9,400 restoration workers in place or mobilizing to restore service for customers as of Saturday morning.
Dominion Energy said it is preparing for widespread power outages in Virginia and North Carolina caused by heavy ice and snow, with restoration potentially taking days if outages occur.
Updated at 13.58 EST
More than 11,000 flights cancelled
The number of flights canceled has been updated to more than 11,000 across the US as the monster storm has begun to wreak havoc and threaten to knock out power for days.
Roughly 140 million people, or more than 40% of the US population, are under a winter storm warning from New Mexico to New England. The National Weather Service forecast warned of widespread heavy snow and a band of catastrophic ice stretching from east Texas to North Carolina. By midday Saturday, a quarter of an inch (0.6cm) of ice was reported in parts of south-eastern Oklahoma, eastern Texas and portions of Louisiana.
A flight status screen shows canceled flights to the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, area from the Salt Lake City international airport on Saturday. Photograph: Sydney Schaefer/APShare
Updated at 14.13 EST
Winter Storm Fern triggered a buying frenzy across much of the US before its arrival.
Practically empty shelves were seen in grocery stores across the country on Thursday and Friday, mirroring images of shoppers mass-buying supplies at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic during the first few months of 2020.
A grocery store in St Louis, Missouri, on Friday. Photograph: Lawrence Bryant/ReutersA Costco in Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday. Photograph: Erik S Lesser/EPAA store in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Friday. Photograph: Eric Cox/ReutersShare
Updated at 14.12 EST
Dharna Noor
This storm has the potential to bring long-lasting power outages, with those blackouts likely to be politicized.
When the deadly winter storm Uri struck Texas in 2021, it left millions without power as the state’s grid collapsed under surging demand. Republican politicians and fossil fuel allies were quick to blame clean energy for the disaster. But though the storm wreaked havoc on all energy sources, widespread evidence (including a federal investigation) showed that the outages were primarily caused by failing gas infrastructure.
Experts have long warned that the climate crisis is already making power outages in the US more common as climate-fueled extreme weather pushes an already heavily burdened energy grid to its limit. It’s a problem sparking even more concern as fuel-guzzling data centers pop up across the US.
Wind and solar power, the quickest-to-deploy energy sources, could help ensure Americans have consistent power amid that increasing demand. But climate hawks may be quick to note during forthcoming blackouts, Trump has been blocking renewable energy projects, calling them a “scam.”
ShareNearly 85,000 power outages reported
Power outages across the country have already surged to nearly 85,000, according to PowerOutage.us.
Texas is reporting by far the largest number of outages with more than 43,000 homes and businesses affected.
Outages in Louisiana have risen to more than 6,000. Arkansas just surpassed 5,000 outages.
All other affected states are still reporting fewer than 4,000 buildings without power.
Updated at 13.44 EST
Nearly 10,000 flights cancelled across the US this weekend
So far, nearly 10,000 flights across the US set to take off over the weekend have been canceled.
Delta Air Lines urged passengers traveling this weekend to reschedule their flights as the storm threatened to disrupt operations and force widespread cancellations.
The airline said customers should expect flight cancellations across the Ohio and Tennessee valleys, including in Nashville and Raleigh-Durham, as the storm threatens to disrupt weekend travel. They added that they expect “additional schedule adjustments for Atlanta and the north-east regions” on Saturday morning.
On Thursday, Delta canceled flights at several airports in five states, warning that slow operations could trigger more delays and cancellations and complicate rebooking during one of the busiest winter travel periods.
Airlines are encouraging passengers to keep a close watch over their flight status and use mobile apps or airline websites for the quickest rebooking options as the storm advances.
Updated at 13.44 EST
This morning, Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social platform: “I have approved Emergency Declarations for the Historic Winter Storms headed to the Great State of South Carolina and the Commonwealth of Virginia. With the help of FEMA and our State partners, we will keep everyone safe, and make sure both States have the support they need. We will continue to monitor, and stay in touch with all States in the path of this storm. Stay Safe, and Stay Warm!”
On Friday morning, Trump had posted: “Record Cold Wave expected to hit 40 States. Rarely seen anything like it before. Could the Environmental Insurrectionists please explain – WHATEVER HAPPENED TO GLOBAL WARMING???”
In reality, the climate crisis is causing more instability in weather systems and patterns, disrupting the polar vortex and bringing more extremes amid rapidly rising global temperatures. Arctic temperatures are more frequently and persistently sweeping across parts of the US not accustomed to prolonged severe cold weather.
Trump has long been a climate crisis skeptic and has been consistently pulling the US back from domestic climate action and international treaties to curb global heating driven by human-caused emissions, while spinning inaccurate information.
ShareStates of emergency announced in 16 states
States of emergency have been announced in 16 states including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. Emergency declarations were also made in Missouri, Tennessee, Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania.
New York added itself to the list later on Friday, as did Arkansas, Kansas and Kentucky. Muriel Bowser, the mayor of Washington DC, has declared a state of emergency in the district.
Updated at 13.44 EST
Hello, and welcome to our live blog coverage of the winter storm system currently moving across much of the midwest and southern US. My name is Marina Dunbar and I will be bringing you the latest news lines.
More than 220 million people are likely to be affected by the huge winter weather system as it forms in parts of the Rocky mountains and Great Plains and surges across southern and midwestern areas from Friday, blowing up the east coast on Saturday and reaching as far north as Maine by Sunday. The storm has been dubbed Winter Storm Fern by the Weather Channel.
Updated at 12.16 EST