WASHINGTON — On Saturday, approximately 240 million people found themselves under cold weather advisories and winter storm warnings, as a formidable weather system threatened to unleash fierce winds, flooding, and substantial snowfall along the East Coast. Forecasters warned of blizzard-like conditions from a “bomb cyclone” impacting the Southeast.
Temperatures were dropping sharply, compounding the challenges faced by tens of thousands whose homes and businesses were still without power following a previous snow and ice storm. This earlier storm wreaked havoc by stalling traffic, toppling trees, and resulting in over 100 fatalities. On Saturday morning, West Virginia recorded a frigid low temperature of minus 27 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 33 degrees Celsius), according to Bob Oravec, lead meteorologist at the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland.
The southern Appalachians, along with the Carolinas and Georgia, were projected to receive between 6 to 10 inches (15 to 25 centimeters) of snow, Oravec indicated. The Carolinas could experience blizzard conditions due to the bomb cyclone, a term used to describe a rapidly intensifying storm system off the Southeast coast, characterized by strong winds.
“Anytime extreme cold warnings are issued, venturing outside becomes dangerous due to the risk of frostbite,” Oravec advised. “This is especially true in regions still grappling with power outages, as prolonged exposure to these frigid conditions poses significant health risks.”
In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina — a city whose official emblem features the sun, palm trees, and a seagull — 6 inches (15 centimeters) of snow were anticipated. Lacking snow removal equipment, local officials, including Mayor Mark Kruea, planned to make do with whatever resources were available.
Forecasts predicted subfreezing temperatures extending into February, with heavy snowfall expected in the Carolinas, Virginia, and northeast Georgia over the weekend. Certain areas in North Carolina could see up to a foot (30 centimeters) of snow. Additionally, snowfall was deemed possible from Maryland to Maine.
The frigid cold was expected to plunge as far south as Florida.
Temperatures neared the teens (minus 10 Celsius) in Nashville, Tennessee, and frustrations bubbled up for those who spent a week without power.
Terry Miles, a 59-year-old construction worker whose home has had no electricity since a previous storm struck Sunday, resorted to using a fish fryer for heat and worried about the danger of carbon monoxide.
“I’m taking a chance of killing myself and killing my wife, because — Why?” Miles said after attending a Nashville Electric Service news conference intended to showcase the utility’s repairs on poles and lines. He then pointed to officials.
More than 127,000 homes and businesses were without electricity, mostly in Mississippi and Tennessee, according to the outage tracking website poweroutage.us. That included more than 47,000 in Nashville as of Saturday morning.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said he shared “strong concerns” with leadership of Nashville Electric Service, adding that residents “need a clear timeline for power restoration, transparency on the number of linemen deployed, and a better understanding of when work will be completed in their neighborhood.”
The utility has defended its response, saying the storm that struck last weekend was unprecedented.
Mississippi officials said the massive winter storm was its worst since 1994. About 80 warming centers were opened, and National Guard troops delivered supplies by truck and helicopter.
Experts warned of the growing risks of hypothermia. Frostbite was also a concern in the South, where some people may lack sufficiently warm clothing, said Dr. David Nestler, an emergency medicine specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.
More than 100 people have died from Texas to New Jersey, roughly half of them in Tennessee, Mississippi and Louisiana. While some deaths have been attributed to hypothermia, others are suspected to be related to carbon monoxide exposure. Officials have not released specific details about some deaths.
In North Carolina, hundreds of National Guard soldiers readied to help and state workers worked to prepare roads.
The city of Wake Forest saw a steady stream of people filling propane tanks Friday at Holding Oil and Gas, including José Rosa, who arrived after striking out at three other places.
“I’m here in this cold weather, and I don’t like it,” Rosa said as he held a 20-pound (9-kilogram) tank.
In Dare County, home to much of North Carolina’s Outer Banks, residents worried that more unoccupied houses in communities like Rodanthe and Buxton could collapse into the Atlantic Ocean.
Associated Press writers Jeff Martin in Kennesaw, Georgia; Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina; Gary Robertson in Raleigh, North Carolina; Jonathan Mattise and Travis Loller in Nashville, Tennessee; Allen G. Breed in Wake Forest, North Carolina; Sarah Brumfield in Washington; David Fischer in Fort Lauderdale; Devi Shastri in Milwaukee and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed.
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