The cold weather sweeping through much of the US is still going to be around Friday, but the good news is that it’s expected to warm up this weekend and into next week.
However, right now there are still over 60 million people under winter weather alerts and over 25 million under a hard freeze warning.
A slow warming can be expected across the South, but, temperatures will remain much below normal into the weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
A system in the Northwest is expected to produce rain and mountain snow. And the NWS is warning that a “cold front will produce a wintry mix in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast with heavy rain that could cause flash flooding in the Southeast.”
To date, there are 38 confirmed deaths caused by the wintry weather since last Thursday — and that number is expected to rise.
Repairs are on as thousands of customers are still without power in Mississippi after an ice storm.
Power still not back
Power is still not back in many homes in Texas and Mississippi. More than 200,000 customers in Texas and over 100,000 in Mississippi are still in the dark.
Texas is still trying to limp back to normalcy, but the water supply is still a major concern. President Joe Biden spoke with Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Thursday and promised the federal government will work with state and local authorities to bring relief and address the critical needs of the families suffering because of the weather.
Snow plows clear the roads in Barnegat Township, New Jersey.
How people are coping
But Texas is not the only state feeling the fury of the winter weather.
In Wayne, Pennsylvania, people are scrambling to try and clear the slushy snow before it freezes causing dangerous conditions, according to CNN affiliate 3CBS Philly. Wayne received 10-plus inches of snow during the storm. And now people are concerned what’s left after shoveling sidewalks and driveways is freezing and will make the roads slippery.
In North Carolina, some school districts in the Piedmont Triad area are canceling classes or moving to online instruction Friday to keep students safe, according to CNN affiliate WXII 12. A few schools still plan to have in-person learning, but plan to start two or three hours later than usual.
And in in Winston-Salem, a number of vehicles were crushed in a parking lot when a tree got uprooted and fell during the ice storm Thursday morning, WXII 12 reported.
“Well it kind of sounded like somebody blew off some dynamite the way it came down and just hit real hard,” resident Hope Woods told WXII 12. “We were brushing our teeth and I was like ‘OK I hear a bunch of commotion.’ So we look out the window and there’s this giant tree crushed on all the cars.”
But, despite the hardships being faced across the country, there are stories of hope.
A Philadelphia resident is offering free rides to essential workers, especially those in the health care sector, according to CNN affiliate WPVI. Ian Poush has been driving doctors, nurses, or any medical support staff who need help getting to work or home from their shifts, but can’t navigate the icy roads.
“Your regular hospital staff that needed to be there, your maintenance staff, your security guards, they’re essential as well. Yes, they’re not directly treating patients, but the doctors and nurses need them there,” Poush told WPVI. And he’s encouraging others to help out in their communities as well.
Workers clear the snow in Huntington, West Virginia.
National Guard called up
At least four states have called up the National Guard to help out if needed. Arkansas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Texas have committed a total of about 380 Guardsmen, a National Guard Bureau spokesman told CNN. In addition, North Carolina is getting ready to deploy its National Guard “should they be needed.”
Other states may have activated the National Guard but not yet informed the National Guard Bureau, the spokesman added.
Weekend Weather
There are still over 25 million under a hard freeze warning in parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. But, by the end of the weekend temperatures will slowly be out of the sub-freezing range. And by next week, they’re expected to be in the 60s and 70s.
In the Northeast, over 60 million are under winter weather alerts, but a vast majority of them will expire by the end of Friday. Ice accumulation is expected in parts of North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. And much of the Northeast will see at least one to three inches of snow by the end of the storm system.
The eastern parts of the Carolinas and Georgia are under a flash flood watch and expect to get around one to two inches of rainfall.
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