Polar storm hits America: Emergency declared, power outages and flight cancellations
The United States is experiencing widespread disruption in many states as a polar storm across the country, starting in the southern states and moving northeast, leaving behind harsh weather conditions and significant material losses. This cold wave, which struck the country on Sunday, has created dangerous conditions across vast areas stretching from Texas to New England, prompting a large-scale government mobilization.
In detailing the deteriorating weather, officials and the National Weather Service warned that the polar air mass following the storm would bring a sharp and dangerous drop in temperatures lasting several days. The agency stated that “the effects of snow and freezing rain will continue into next week, with repeated waves of refreezing making surfaces icy and extremely hazardous to driving and walking for the foreseeable future,” foreshadowing prolonged disruptions to daily life.
Energy and infrastructure crisis
The storm's damage wasn't limited to transportation disruptions; it also struck at the heart of daily life: power. More than 700,000 customers, mostly in the southern United States, lost electricity on Sunday morning, according to websites that track power outages. These outages are a worrying indicator of the electrical grid's ability to withstand extreme weather events.
Tennessee, Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana suffered the most damage, with more than 100,000 homes and businesses affected in each state. Authorities across a wide area, from Texas to North Carolina and New York, urged residents to stay indoors, and the Texas Department of Emergency Management posted a stark warning on its X platform: “Stay off the roads unless absolutely necessary.”.
Paralysis in air and land transport
In terms of air travel, the storm caused widespread chaos at US airports, with flight tracking data showing the cancellation of more than 10,000 flights within the United States on Sunday alone, in addition to more than 4,000 cancellations the previous day. This major disruption has significant economic repercussions for airlines and affected the travel plans of thousands of passengers, highlighting the scale of the economic impact of such natural disasters.
State of emergency and official response
As the storm moved toward densely populated cities on the East Coast, at least 20 states, in addition to Washington, D.C., declared a state of emergency to mobilize all available resources to address the aftermath. Residents of Washington, D.C., awoke to a blanket of white on sidewalks and streets, with forecasts predicting that the snowfall would turn into hard sleet.
Commenting on the crisis, US President Donald Trump stated via Truth Social that he was monitoring the situation, saying, “We will continue to monitor the situation and communicate with all the states in the path of this storm. Stay safe and warm!” These events once again highlight the importance of preparing for natural disasters and developing infrastructure to cope with the severe climate changes that are increasingly affecting various parts of the world.
