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Tag: blizzards and ice storms

  • Storm system that killed 5 people in Missouri threatens 50 million Americans with severe weather | CNN

    Storm system that killed 5 people in Missouri threatens 50 million Americans with severe weather | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    A destructive storm system that spawned at least 11 tornado reports and killed five people in Missouri now threatens millions more from Texas to New York with damaging winds, large hail and more potential twisters.

    At least five people were killed when a possible tornado struck Bollinger County, Missouri, Sheriff Casey Graham said Wednesday.

    Another five people were reported injured, said Missouri State Highway Patrol Col. Eric Olson. At least 87 structures were damaged – 12 of which were totally destroyed, Olson said.

    Authorities were still involved in search and rescue efforts, a highway patrol official said.

    “When you look at the devastation of this, it’s going to be weeks among months to be able to recover,” Missouri Gov. Mike Parson said in a news conference Wednesday. “It’s a long journey ahead for the people that live here.”

    The damage in Bollinger County appears to be from a high-end EF-2 tornado, the National Weather Service said, adding details may change as they receive more information.

    The same storm system that battered parts of Missouri, Iowa, Illinois and Michigan continued to threaten more than 50 million people from Texas to New York Wednesday evening.

    A man surveys the wreckage and debris outside his destroyed home on April 5, 2023 in Glenallen, Missouri.

    At least nine tornadoes were reported Tuesday, including two in Iowa and seven in Illinois – where several buildings were damaged in the town of Colona and multiple semi-trucks were toppled over along the I-88.

    More than 170 hail reports also emerged from Iowa, Illinois, Missouri and Michigan on Tuesday. Davenport, Iowa, was pummeled with 4-inch hail – larger than a softball – while in Oswego, Illinois, baseball-sized hail plummeted from the sky.

    Debris and wreckage is seen after a tornado in the Glenallen area, Missouri, on April 5, 2023.

    An enhanced risk – Level 3 out of 5 – of severe storms remained in place Wednesday evening from northwestern Tennessee to north Ohio, including Columbus, Nashville, Cleveland, Cincinnati and Louisville.

    A Level 3 enhanced risk means multiple persistent and widespread severe storms are possible.

    And while tornado watches were no longer active, at the peak of the storm earlier in the day, there were more than 20 million people under tornado watches that extended more than 800 miles, from eastern Arkansas to southeastern Michigan.

    This latest round of severe weather comes just days after parts of the South and Midwestt were ravaged by violent storms and tornadoes that left 32 people dead.

    A semi loaded with cattle tipped over in South Dakota.

    Meanwhile, winter storms plagued the Northern Plains Wednesday, a day after “blizzard conditions” led to the shutdown of more than 100 miles of Interstate 90.

    Widespread heavy snow has fallen across the Rockies and is expected to continue over the Northern Plains, which have been seeing snowfall for several hours.

    “Blizzard warnings are in effect for parts of the Dakotas where snow showers and strong winds will cause blowing snow and reduced visibility, which will make travel dangerous,” the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center said Wednesday afternoon.

    Parts of eastern North Dakota and northern Minnesota will see several inches worth of snow Wednesday, the center added.

    The North Dakota Department of Transportation urged drivers to stay off the roads, warning conditions are too dangerous even for emergency crews.

    “If you don’t need to drive, stay off the roads. It’s dangerous for you and emergency crews. If you’re stranded, crews may not be able to reach you,” the transportation department tweeted.

    Meanwhile, sleet and freezing rain will impact parts of the Upper Great Lakes and New England, the prediction center said.

    “Winter Weather Advisories are in effect for parts of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont through early Thursday morning,” the center added, warning of possible power outages and difficult travel conditions.

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  • What a difference a year makes: From nearly no snow to a potentially record-breaking pile-up in California | CNN

    What a difference a year makes: From nearly no snow to a potentially record-breaking pile-up in California | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    After a remarkable series of winter storms, California water officials reported Monday in their April snow survey the Sierra snowpack is among the largest on record, dating back to the 1950s.

    The state’s Department of Water Resources surveys mountain snowpack once a month through the winter, and the April survey is usually the most consequential. Officials use the measurement to forecast the state’s water resources for the rest of the year.

    Last year’s survey was pitifully low. Water officials had just a small patch of shallow snow to measure after a disappointing winter. The snow depth on April 2 was just 2.5 inches – part of a disastrous multiyear dry spell that triggered water cuts across the state.

    But what a difference a year makes.

    Twelve months later, the mountains are now loaded with white gold. South of Lake Tahoe at Phillips Station, as snowflakes fell from the surrounding hills, officials measured a snow depth of 126.5 inches and a snow water equivalent – how much liquid water the snow holds – of 54 inches.

    Snowpack in the California Sierra is 221% of normal for this location at this time of year, officials at the Department of Water Resources said. Statewide, snowpack is averaging 237% compared to normal for the date – a significant boost after the back-to-back storms.

    Sean de Guzman, snow survey manager for the state Department of Water Resources, said this is the “deepest snowpack” he has personally ever measured, noting that there have only been three other years when California snowpack has been greater than 200% of average in April.

    “This year is going to join that list and be another year well above 200% of average,” de Guzman told journalists at a briefing Monday. “We still are waiting for more snow data and snow survey results to come in from our various cooperators and partners. But as of this morning, as of right now, it’s looking like this year, statewide snowpack will most likely be either the first- or second-biggest snowpack on record dating back to 1950.”

    Sean de Guzman, right, walks on the snow after he and his team conducted the April snow survey at Phillips Station on Monday.

    Snowpack in the Sierra is critical to the state’s water resources. The snow acts as a natural reservoir – melting into rivers and human-made reservoirs through the spring and summer – and accounts for 30% of California’s freshwater supply in an average year.

    The state’s largest reservoirs, which were recently at critically low levels, have been replenished and are running higher than their historical averages.

    While the heavy rains caused widespread flash flooding and several feet of snow trapped residents in their homes in the higher elevations, the deluge of snow and rain has largely improved California soil moisture and streamflow levels after being gripped by the drought for so long.

    California Gov. Gavin Newsom last month also announced the removal of some drought restrictions, while the Department of Water Resources said it will increase the amount of water deliveries to 75% of requested water supplies this year – up from the initial plan of only 5% last year.

    “Even though we have this extraordinary snowpack, we know that the droughts are getting deeper and more frequent, and that means we have to use water efficiently no matter what are hydrologic conditions,” Department of Water Resources Director Karla Nemeth said. “And the governor has emphasized that as the path forward for California, and to make sure that we are resilient as an economy and for our environment that we all continue to use water wisely in the state.”

    elam vpx screengrab

    ‘Unbelievable’: CNN reporter reacts to record snowfall in California

    To find out just how much snow the Sierra Nevada were buried under this winter, Airborne Snow Observatories Inc., which provides its data to California’s Department of Water Resources, flies over the range to gauge what’s fallen.

    “We measure snowpack wall-to-wall over mountains from aircraft using lasers and spectrometers,” said Tom Painter, the company’s CEO. “From that information, we can then know the full distribution of how much water there is in a mountain snowpack and also how fast it’s going to melt. That’s allowed us then to change forecast errors from being pretty large to very small and really dramatically changed water management in the west.”

    The planes fly for about six hours at a time, collecting different kinds of data through open portals in the belly of their planes, which they process and deliver within about 72 hours to help municipalities allocate water resources, generate hydroelectricity and meet environmental metrics.

    Snow blows across mountain tops March 29 near Mammoth Lakes, California.

    “The scanning LIDAR is a fancy laser pointer, essentially, that sprays out laser pulses – about 500,000 pulses per second – flying along at 23,000 feet, and measures how long it takes for the laser pulse to go out, hit the surface and come back,” Painter said. “And we can use that information to then know the surface of the snow. Every square foot of mountain snow is touched by our lasers.”

    The scientists then compare this data to when they’ve flown over the same area when there wasn’t any snow.

    “The difference between those two is snow depth,” Painter explained. “Depth times density is equal to what’s called snow water equivalent, which is the most important water metric out there that allows civilization to exist in the Western US. It really is the mountain snowpack that drives all of this civilization.”

    The year-to-year difference couldn’t be starker, Painter said, adding that this year, there will be snow in the Sierra into the summer.

    Last year, the company ended its flyover season in late May; this year, they expect to be flying until August.

    Courtesy Airborne Snow Observatories, Inc.

    For the Tuolumne River Basin around Yosemite National Park – which supplies water to San Francisco and other Bay Area municipalities – imagery from last year this time is mostly dark blue: barely any snow. This year, the same area is swathed in orange, yellow and white, indicating snow depths of 10 to 20 feet.

    On Mammoth Mountain in the eastern Sierra, about 60 feet of snow has fallen this year, breaking the old record set in 2010. And snow depths have reached more than 100 feet in some areas around Mammoth. The amount of snow is so profound that the resort has already announced that the ski season will last through the end of July this year.

    “It’s fascinating to look at how the cliffs up on the upper mountain have really gotten buried and the gullies between them are filling in to where they just are kind of disappearing,” Painter noted, adding that he’s never seen Mammoth Mountain this covered.

    Despite all the rain and snow that has boosted reservoirs and allowed officials to lift some water restrictions, scientists still say drought concerns are a priority as climate change continues to impact California’s weather.

    “The climate models had already been predicting what it is that we are seeing now, which is this hydroclimate whiplash where we’re going from really dry years to really wet years,” Painter said, adding that this whiplash is hard on water managers. “That means we could very well have a dry year next year. No one really knows.”

    And as temperatures warm again as summer approaches, experts warn more flood threats lie ahead as the snow melts. California water officials said that after today, they plan to shift their focus “from snowpack building to snowpack melting,” and actively support emergency flood protection efforts.

    “We’re now heading into another issue of increasing solar radiation and chances of warm nights and lack of refreeze, and that brings up snowmelt flooding concerns,” said Benjamin Hatchett, researcher at the Desert Research Institute. “That’s going to be something to think about as we move into the spring, summer with this colossal snowpack sitting above us.”

    Snow blankets the Sierra Nevada mountains on March 29 in Mammoth Lakes, California.

    Hatchett also warns not to get “caught up in all these benefits,” and consider what all this water can mean for vegetation growth and wildfire fuel.

    “As things start to dry out and get warmer, this is a good year to really think about what’s going to happen, what’s growing, and how can you deal with [the fuels] to reduce your fire risk in upcoming seasons,” Hatchett said.

    Even with California’s historic snowpack this year, the state still pulls about a third of its water needs for the southern part of the state from the Colorado River Basin, where the snowfall totals improved this year, but were not as strong as the numbers posted in California.

    The country’s largest reservoirs – Lake Powell and Lake Mead – in the Colorado River Basin are still hovering at or near-record-low levels following years of drought and overuse. But it could also improve in the coming months as snowpack levels rise in the region.

    “That’s good news for a very strained and stressed system,” Hatchett said. “But we probably need five, six or maybe 10 more years of this to really make a big dent in the situation there, but this is much more encouraging to see.”

    In California, water officials will head back to Phillips Station in May to measure more snow. The last time a May snow survey was necessary was in 2020, when the drought began.

    The difference between last year and this year in California is significant. And although the state has all this excess of water now, climate experts warn that drought is always looming, especially in a drier, hotter and thirstier world.

    Nemeth said there is much more work to be done to prepare and “adapt to our new climate realities.”

    “You really get a sense of the extreme nature of our climate here in California,” she said. “There’s lots of fascinating research around the degree to which climate has been driving the intensity of these storms, but also the very rapid shift from very dry to very wet.”

    “It is truly an extraordinary moment,” she said. “But we don’t get to stop and enjoy that for too long.”

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  • Severe weather threat ramps up as western storm pushes east | CNN

    Severe weather threat ramps up as western storm pushes east | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    The same storm system that brought so much rain and snow to the western US is moving east and intensifying, making for a potential severe weather outbreak that could impact nearly 70 million people from the Mississippi Valley to the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys on Friday.

    “A concerning scenario appears to be developing,” warned the Storm Prediction Center. “Intense, damaging gusts and several tornadoes (some strong and long-track) are expected.”

    This weather pattern will be similar to the ones we have seen repeatedly over the last few months, when an atmospheric river event or storm system impacting the West intensifies as it moves eastward, resulting in a severe weather outbreak across the midsection of the country.

    There is a small chance of storms Thursday across the Plains, including in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Sioux Falls and Topeka. We could also see gusty winds, hail and the possibility of an isolated tornado.

    However, the severe threat ramps up on Friday.

    The storm center has placed a Level 4 out of 5 “moderate risk” of severe weather for nearly 4 million people in two separate areas along the Mississippi River: For portions of northeastern Arkansas, the Missouri Bootheel and western Tennessee, including Memphis, and for portions of eastern Iowa and northwest Illinois.

    Places such as Cedar Rapids, Davenport and Iowa City are included in the severe weather threat.

    Track the storms here

    “Things are still looking quite volatile in our region for Friday,” the National Weather Service office in Quad Cities, Iowa, said. “The storm motions are progged to be over 50 mph, given the strong wind fields, so people should plan ahead for sheltering in case severe weather strikes, as these storms will be moving quickly!”

    A wider area that stretches from northern Iowa and southwestern Wisconsin down to central Mississippi and southern Arkansas is under a Level 3 out of 5 “enhanced risk” of severe weather.

    This threat affects more than 14 million people in places such as Nashville, St. Louis, Des Moines and Little Rock.

    “Initially there could be a small tornado threat with storms as they enter our western counties, but a line of storms with a straight-line damaging wind threat will ultimately be the main concern,” the National Weather Service office in Nashville explained.

    Winds could gust as high as 70 mph and large hail is possible.

    Many of these storms will continue into the overnight hours, creating an even more dangerous scenario because people are asleep.

    How to be safe in severe weather

    This severe weather event comes one week after a deadly tornado outbreak killed dozens of people, many of them in Mississippi.

    Hear how tornado lifted couple up in the air while sitting in their bathtub

    “For this week our highest chance of severe weather is a little north of where it was last week,” National Weather Service meteorologist Amber Schlessiger told CNN. Schlessiger says that the region hit hard one week ago must be prepared. “People are going to be asleep and not put their alarms on until the next morning, so they need to have a way to be woken up.”

    There is also an existing threat of severe weather for more than 31 million people from southern Minnesota and Wisconsin down to portions of East Texas, northern Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

    Gusty winds, large hail and the possibility of isolated tornadoes are all possible as the fast-moving storms track eastward.

    Along with the severe threat, heavy rainfall could lead to flooding. The prediction center has highlighted an area that stretches from eastern Oklahoma to Kentucky for a slight risk of excessive rainfall.

    “Hourly rates of 1-2 (inches) +/hr are possible (with these hourly rates largely driving the flash flood threat, as the bulk of the forecast precipitation is expected over a period of 3-6 hours,” the prediction center explained.

    Once the storms form, we could see them begin to “train” – meaning they roll over the same areas for long periods of time. This will be the main driver for potential flash flooding.

    Heavy snow will spread across much of the Upper Midwest, adding to their already banner winter season.

    “Winter weather-related advisories are in effect from South Dakota east into Minnesota and Wisconsin for the potential of snow totals generally between 3-6 (inches), with locally heavier totals of 10 (inches) + possible,” the prediction center said.

    Along with heavy snow, winds gusts as high as 50 mph could lead to whiteout conditions.

    “Gusty winds behind the front upwards of 50 mph will lead to areas of blowing snow and blizzard conditions, making travel treacherous to impossible.”

    Temperatures will remain unseasonably cold with highs on Thursday and Friday only making it into the 20s and 30s.

    Lows at night will drop into the single digits Saturday morning.

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  • Most Californians are under a severe weather alert as another atmospheric river dumps heavy rain | CNN

    Most Californians are under a severe weather alert as another atmospheric river dumps heavy rain | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    California state emergency officials have deployed crews across the state to respond to the potentially damaging impacts of yet another atmospheric river slamming the storm-fatigued state.

    More than 35 million Californians – most of the state’s population – were under some kind of weather alert Tuesday afternoon.

    Powerful winds, thunderstorms and showers were impacting most of central and Southern California Tuesday.

    Wind gusts reaching up to 70 mph coupled with the heavy rain could down trees and cut power, the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center said. More than 170,000 customers across the state were without power Tuesday afternoon, according to PowerOutage.us.

    State transportation officials reported snow and windy conditions in the mountains of Southern California’s Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Officials recommended residents in the area maintain at least a two-week supply of food, water, medication and fuel ahead of the rapidly strengthening storm’s arrival.

    “Visibility is at a big ‘nope’ today,” the state transportation department for the region wrote on Twitter. “Please consider travel when conditions are more favorable. If you must travel, be prepared and stay safe.”

    The heavy rain and snow could worsen conditions for communities still flooded from the previous atmospheric river that pummeled the state – and ended just days ago.

    “Locally several inches of rainfall is expected by Wednesday morning across especially southern California and this will foster concerns for rapid runoff, flooding and mudslides given the already wet, saturated soil conditions that are in place,” the weather prediction center said.

    California has already seen at least 12 atmospheric rivers this winter season that ravaged communities, displaced residents and prompted emergency declarations as floodwater inundated neighborhoods, swelled rivers, damaged roads and sent mud and rocks sliding down hills.

    “Now’s the time to ensure you and your family are prepared,” officials from the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services urged residents Tuesday.

    Swift-water rescue teams, hand crews and bulldozers were also stationed in counties throughout the state.

    “This is going to be yet another challenging event – probably not an extreme storm individually by historical standards – but once again, another significant event that, on top of everything that has come before, it’s going to cause some major problems,” UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain said in a video.

    It’s unclear how the climate crisis could be influencing the number of storms that hit the West Coast, but scientists have linked it to an increase in the amount of moisture the atmosphere holds. That means storms, like these atmospheric rivers, are able to bring more moisture inland, leading to an increase in rainfall rates and flash flooding.

    Since October 1, Los Angeles has received more than 24 inches of rain — roughly twice as much as it normally gets for this time period. That’s also about 10 inches above their annual average, as the vast majority of California’s rainfall occurs from late fall to early spring.

    And it’s not just Los Angeles: cities across the state are seeing very similar numbers.

    San Francisco, Oakland, Sacramento, Stockton and Fresno have all seen 150 to 200% of their normal rainfall since October 1.

    While the extreme rainfall has triggered flash flooding, mudslides and caused damage, it has also significantly increased critical state reservoirs including Lakes Shasta and Oroville, which have risen by more than 100 and 180 feet respectively since December.

    The widespread rain, mountain snow and strong winds across parts of central and Southern California will continue Wednesday and will gradually clear up Thursday, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Sarah Rogowski.

    The heaviest impact will likely be felt in southern California, which could see around 1 to 3 inches of rain across lower elevations and 2 to 4 inches across the foothills through Thursday.

    The Weather Prediction Center raised the flood threat to a moderate level Monday for areas of Southern California, covering more than 15 million people in coastal areas from Los Angeles to San Diego.

    Soils are still overly saturated with water from last week’s storms, setting the stage for more flooding and rapid runoffs.

    The powerful storm could also lash Southern California with maximum wind gusts near 75 mph, adding the dangers of fallen trees and powerlines to the mix of hazards Californians are facing this week. More than 30 million people are under alerts for strong winds from California into Nevada and Arizona.

    In the Sierra Nevada and Southern California mountains, as much as 3 to 4 feet of snow could be piled on top of already buried communities, likely straining infrastructure and making travel difficult, the weather service said.

    Thousands were evacuated from two small central California towns, Alpaugh and Allensworth, in Tulare County, where there have been multiple breaches in waterways and repair efforts were “unsuccessful with the amount of water,” Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux said.

    Officials worried roads could become impassable and isolate residents, and deputies went door-to-door before dawn Monday asking people to flee.

    So far, seven structures were destroyed and more than 680 were damaged by floods in Tulare County, according to Cal Fire.

    Amid fears over mud and debris flows from the El Dorado and Apple fire burn scars in San Bernardino County, an evacuation warning was issued for the communities of Oak Glen, Forest Falls, Mountain Home Village, Angelus Oaks and Northeast Yucaipa.

    With more rain on the way, protecting people near vulnerable wildfire burn scar areas is among the top concerns for crews.

    Scorched soil can’t absorb rain at a normal rate, making it unstable, explained Yucaipa Fire Chief Grant Malinowski, who is part of the operations group keeping watch over the El Dorado burn scar.

    The fear is that mud and debris could slide down, make roads impassable, damage homes and strand people, Malinowski told CNN.

    Firefighters across the state have been stationed around burn scars each time an atmospheric river menacingly takes aim at the state – and they’ve been doing it a lot this winter season.

    “It’s kind of like almost like fire season right now,” Malinowski said, describing thousands of firefighters and crew members from Cal Fire and the National Guard throughout the state responding to recent storms.

    But unlike with wildfires, residents could have less time to get away from mudslides.

    “It’s not like a fire where they can see the fire building and getting closer. This is instantaneous. It just happens and it’s too late for you to react to it,” Malinowski said.

    And performing rescues in mudslides is no easy task – so it’s important for residents to obey evacuation orders, which aren’t made lightly, Malinowski said.

    “We understand the gravity of asking people to voluntarily leave their homes, but it’s also weighed with the ability for us to rescue people, knowing that it’s going to be a very difficult – if not impossible – task to get through just tons of tons of dirt and debris where we just literally can’t make access,” Malinowski said.

    Up in the mountains, the concern is heavy snow stranding people.

    “The storm is expected to peak on Tuesday and Wednesday and dump as much as three feet of additional snow on mountain communities that were hit with as much of 10 feet of snow during storms in late February and early this month,” San Bernardino County officials said.

    The county said it is activating public works employees for 24-hour snow plowing and storm patrol, having County Flood Control District crews active on split shifts during the storm and adding additional sheriff deputies to routine patrols for the next two weeks.

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  • A 12th atmospheric river is headed toward storm-fatigued California, threatening even more floods | CNN

    A 12th atmospheric river is headed toward storm-fatigued California, threatening even more floods | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Still reeling from an onslaught of powerful storms and destructive floods, California is bracing for a 12th atmospheric river that’s expected to bring a new round of heavy snow and rain to the state.

    The latest in the parade of storms ushered moisture into California Sunday, lashing the state with high winds and dumping more rain and snow over the region before it was expected to spread inland Monday.

    Thousands were under evacuation orders Sunday in two small central California towns – Alpaugh and Allensworth – as officials worried roads could become impassable and isolate residents, according to the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office. First responders from dozens of agencies, including the California National Guard, were out Sunday afternoon helping residents evacuate – a sight that has become familiar in the flood-ravaged state this winter season.

    “The devastation is indescribable,” Tulare County farmer Brandon Mendonsa told CNN affiliate KFSN. “The water is still coming – this is far from being done.”

    The next atmospheric river, mainly taking aim at southern California, is expected to be colder than the last and arrive Tuesday with high winds, heavy rain, mountain snow and the threat of more floods. Soils in the Golden State are still overly saturated from last week’s storm, making the ground vulnerable to more flooding and rapid runoffs, the National Weather Service said.

    Though not forecast to be as potent as the atmospheric rivers of previous weeks, the system is expected to bring 1-3 inches of rain across the lower elevations and 2-4 inches across the foothills of Southern California through Thursday. Arizona could also see up to 3 inches of rainfall.

    Powerful winds are also a concern. Gusts could reach up to 80 mph – strong enough to down trees and power lines from the central California coast to Southern California, according to the Weather Service.

    High wind watches were issued for Southern California, including Los Angeles, for Tuesday and Wednesday.

    In the Sierra Nevada and Southern California mountain ranges, snowfall could add up to several feet for some the highest terrain and likely make for hazardous travel over the next few days.

    Winter storm watches have already been issued for the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, where an additional 1-4 feet of snowfall is possible late Monday through Wednesday afternoon. The San Bernardino Mountains are also under a winter storm watch, with snowfall expected to reach up to 4 feet through Wednesday with gusts up to 85 mph.

    This winter, California was hit with 11 different atmospheric rivers – long, narrow bands of moisture that can carry saturated air thousands of miles like a fire hose. While the storms have upended life for many in the state, damaging homes and forcing evacuations, they’ve also helped put a dent in the state’s historic drought.

    Last week’s atmospheric river alone shattered daily rainfall records in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Santa Maria.

    There’s been so much rain that the Southern California water board called off emergency drought conservation measures for over 7 million people.

    Severe drought in California was cut in half from the previous week, now covering only 8% of the state – down from 80.6% just three months ago, according to the US Drought Monitor. Just over a third of the state remains in some level of drought.

    The abnormally wet winter – combined with recent storms – wiped out exceptional and extreme drought in California for the first time since 2020, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

    “Moderate to exceptional drought coverage across the U.S. is at its lowest since August 2020 and is likely to continue improving, or end entirely, across much of California and the Great Basin,” NOAA forecasters said.

    As the snowpack melts in the coming months, it’s expected to further improve drought conditions across much of the western US, according to NOAA. But, that could also mean more floods.

    “Approximately 44% of the U.S. is at risk for flooding this spring,” said Ed Clark, director of NOAA’s National Water Center. “California’s historic snowpack, coupled with spring rain, is heightening the potential for spring floods.”

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  • How Californians are facing the onslaught of flooding, downpours and rough winds as the season’s 12th atmospheric river takes aim | CNN

    How Californians are facing the onslaught of flooding, downpours and rough winds as the season’s 12th atmospheric river takes aim | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Brightly colored toys buried in mud. Brown murky water where cars once parked. Family photos floating through a neighborhood.

    This is what one Southern California community looked like last week, lifelong Ventura resident Angie Thompson said, after the state’s 11th atmospheric river this winter wrought hurricane-like winds and catastrophic flooding.

    “We’re tired,” Monterey County Sheriff Tina Nieto said of a similar mess and clean-up effort hundreds of miles to the north as she joined Gov. Gavin Newsom and other local leaders to tour damage, including the breached Pajaro River levee.

    “Everyone is tired.”

    Yet again, though, the vast state is bracing for the wet blast of another atmospheric river – a long, narrow moisture band that carries saturated air thousands of miles, then discharges it like a fire hose. It’s due to impact the US West from Monday to Wednesday, with widespread rain across central and Southern California and more snow in the Sierra Nevada.

    While the series of storm systems – a regular part of California weather that may be supercharged this year by key climate patterns – is putting a dent in the state’s historic drought, it’s also lashed many of its residents to a carousel of misery with at least one more ride in store.

    “We have neighbors that have lost their entire home,” Thompson said. “One person in particular lost everything, and every time they’d get it under control, something else would happen, and the water would reroute and come back right through the family’s home.”

    The fatigue reaches far beyond those forced to muck out their living rooms. Evacuees fret over when they might be able to return. First responders ponder more triple-shift days – sometimes with their own relatives in need of rescue. And for some who’ve survived California’s other recent woes – from wildfires to mudslides to the Covid-19 pandemic – it’s another battle in the war with worry.

    “Anxiety wants something that no one can have, which is 100% certainty about things,” said Andrea Kulberg, a licensed clinical psychologist who works with Southern California clients highly anxious about disaster.

    People, she said, “want answers that no one can give them.”

    Thompson’s driveway has been a lake since an atmospheric river in January pushed a creek into the Camp Chaffee neighborhood where she’s lived for four years, she told CNN. Flooding swept away a whole box of wedding albums, baby photos, clothing, appliances and tools likely passed down through generations.

    Compared to some neighbors, Thompson’s damage was minimal, she said. But no one remains untouched.

    “Cars, yards … It’s affected every single person over here,” she said. “It’s just really horrible to watch people’s lives just wash down the river.”

    A four-hours’ drive north, more than 2,000 people were evacuated – and more then 200 rescued – this month in Pajaro. Ruth Ruiz left in hurry before dawn March 11 and couldn’t immediately return, she told CNN affiliate KPIX. She worried about her property – and how long it might take to get back to normal life.

    “We don’t really have a plan. We’re just taking it day by day,” Ruiz said. “But we have a feeling it’s going to be months before even insurance can cover any damages.”

    Von Berlanga, meanwhile, stayed in Pajaro and watched last week as water started seeping into his garage, he told CNN. His mom’s home had flooded back in January 1995, when an intense winter storm slammed Monterey County with 6 inches of rain, damaging over 100 homes. Three months later, a second winter storm hit already-saturated areas, causing much more damage.

    A car sits in floodwaters Tuesday in Pajaro, California.

    As the latest of this year’s atmospheric rivers pushed toward shore, Berlanga stayed put with supplies, even as the furnace still showed markings from the 1995 flood, he told CNN.

    “I was prepared,” he said. “I had 30 gallons of water, food for me, food for my dogs.”

    Then as floodwater started seeping into his garage, Berlanga raised his vintage cars out of harm’s way.

    “I jacked up my cars real quick. … They’re OK,” he said as he used a wide hoe to push muddy water around the driveway. “I woke up about 4 o’clock this morning and started cleaning.”

    Water from the Ventura river rises on January 9 to the 101 freeway in Ventura, flooding all lanes.

    During January’s storms, Ventura County Fire Department Capt. Brian McGrath and his team also rushed into action – completing about 80 rescues in one day, he told CNN. Such calls weren’t nearly as frequent last week, he said, crediting residents with being more prepared.

    As another atmospheric river revs up, McGrath and his team are, as always, on call, ready to go within 45 seconds – in some cases for 48 hours or more straight – he said.

    But being a firefighter in one’s own community can be draining.

    “We try to treat everyone around the community as members of our families or friends because a lot of times they are,” McGrath said. “We will make a rescue or end up finding out that it was one of our coworkers friends or family members.”

    “That also runs a toll on us because we’re missing so much of our own family.”

    McGrath is grateful for support from his colleagues and relatives, he told CNN. Without it, going from a long fire season straight into a long winter storm season would be completely draining.

    The state’s varied existential risks – on top of the waning pandemic – also weighs on ordinary Californians.

    As clinical director of Anxiety Experts in Southern California, Kulberg treats clients with anxiety stemming from the state’s deadly wildfires, mudslides and now its devastating floods, she told CNN. Some lost their homes or were rescued from their roofs.

    People “want to know: How long am I going to be distressed for? When’s it going to end? How bad is it gonna get?” she said. “No human can have that.”

    Through a treatment known as exposure therapy, Kulberg works with clients to confront their own stories repeatedly “to habituate to their fear thoughts and memories and visualizations surrounding the story.”

    “Then, they no longer are fearful of having their thoughts and memories and body sensations of anxiety surrounding those events,” she said.

    Damaged trailer homes are seen March 12 in the aftermath of a flood caused by rain-melted snow that raised the Kern River from about 6 feet to 17 feet in Kernville, California.

    For those dealing with higher levels of anxiety during these times, Kulberg offers these recommendations:

    • Remember anxiety cannot harm you; it comes in spikes and it will eventually subside.

    • Remember thoughts are not threats; thoughts that something terrible might happen as a result of extreme weather don’t mean it is more likely to happen, and most of what we think never comes true.

    • Regardless of what body sensations or thoughts of anxiety might be present, try to continue to do things that bring meaning and purpose to life.

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  • First nor’easter of the season set to hit the Northeast and New England | CNN

    First nor’easter of the season set to hit the Northeast and New England | CNN

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    Editor’s Note: A version of this article originally appeared in the weekly weather newsletter, the CNN Weather Brief, which is released every Monday. You can sign up here to receive them every week and during significant storms.



    CNN
     — 

    Much of the Northeast and New England so far has experienced an unusually quiet winter season (aside from areas around the Great Lakes). However, it is all changing this week.

    We are already into meteorological spring as of March 1, which means we did not see a single nor’easter in the winter months, and hardly any snow for some of the East Coast’s big cities. But a major spring nor’easter is in the making and will have far-reached effects on the Northeast and New England this week.

    “Overnight Monday, a coastal low pressure will strengthen rapidly into a major nor’easter that significantly impacts the Northeast beginning later Monday night through Wednesday,” the Weather Prediction Center said.

    A nor’easter is a coastal storm with winds out of the northeast. Nor’easters are notorious for bringing huge impacts such as heavy rain, snow, strong winds, power outages and coastal flooding.

    “The greatest concerns that I have about this storm is the fact that there will be heavy, wet snow that will combine with high winds, essentially causing power outages,” David Novak, director of the Weather Prediction Center, told CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam. “The weight of the snow will be extreme. It’s known as ‘snow loading’ and has to do with the heavy, wet type of snow we are expecting.”

    Areas around New York City will begin feeling the storm’s effects later today. Heavy rain and windy conditions will be the opening act, before the storm peaks tonight through Tuesday evening. Closer to Boston, the storm will peak Tuesday into Wednesday.

    “The heavy-wet nature of the snow, combined with max wind gusts up to 50 mph, will result in scattered to widespread power outages and tree damage,” the prediction center explained. “Similar impacts could be felt along the I-95 corridor from New York City to Boston.”

    Along Cape Cod and the islands, winds could gust as high as 60 mph. Further inland, winds will top 50-55 mph, adding to the threat of falling tree limbs and power outages.

    More than 20 million people are under winter alerts in advance of the storm, including cities like Boston and Worchester in Massachusetts, Albany and Syracuse in New York and Portland, Maine.

    Heavy, wet snow could fall at 2-3 inches per hour, resulting in up to a foot of snow in the higher elevations of the Northeast. The area includes the Catskills and southern Adirondacks in New York, Berkshires and Worcester Hills in Massachusetts, Monadnocks and White Mountains in New Hampshire, and southern Green Mountains in Vermont. Localized snow totals of 24 to 30 inches are possible.

    “We’re trying to tell people not to focus on the amount of snow that you’ve got. Some areas are going to have a lot and other areas will only get four or five inches,” noted Glen Field, warning coordination meteorologist at the weather service office in Boston. ” Anything more than four inches of heavy wet snow will be enough loading to knock down trees, power lines, and lose power,” he added.

    Novak said there will be a sharp difference between low and top snow totals. Some areas around Boston could see up to 7 inches of snow, he said, while other sections, like downtown, might see little to no snow.

    Along with rain, snow, gusty winds and possible power outages, another big concern along the coast will be coastal flooding and beach erosion. For coastal areas in New York and Connecticut, residents can expect water to run a foot to a foot and a half above normal levels. This could result in flooding in coastal communities. Also, four-foot waves will break along the shoreline, leading to beach erosion.

    Get the latest on the nor’easter here

    The storm is coming late in the season, however, it is not unheard of. Nor’easters can strike the Northeast through April. In 1997, a nor’easter on April Fools’ Day buried New England. However, it is odd the first one of the season is striking so late. According to Field, New Englanders knew better than to count on the season finishing without a nor’easter.

    “I think everybody was still expecting that we were going to get one,” Field said.

    By late Wednesday, the nor’easter will push out, leaving chilly and windy conditions.

    Ahead of the storm, Maine Gov. Janet Mills ordered state offices closed Tuesday.

    “I encourage Maine people to stay off the roads if they can, plan for extra time if traveling, and give plenty of space to road crews and first responders working hard to keep us safe,” Mills said.

    New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency for five counties – Morris, Sussex, Warren, Passaic and Bergen – in the northern part of the state.

    Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont ordered a partial activation of the state emergency operations center, starting Tuesday.

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  • The Weather Prediction Center has issued a level 4 of 4 warning of excessive rainfall in some California areas | CNN

    The Weather Prediction Center has issued a level 4 of 4 warning of excessive rainfall in some California areas | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Officials in California issued evacuation warnings in portions of several counties amid powerful storms likely to deliver severe rainfall and cause widespread flooding across the central and northern parts of the state Friday.

    The most dangerous amount of rain could impact nearly 70,000 people along the central California coast, stretching from Salinas southward to San Luis Obispo and including parts of Ventura and Monterey counties, according to the Weather Prediction Center, which issued a level 4 of 4 warning of excessive rainfall in the area.

    “Multiple rounds of rainfall in addition to melting snow will result in the potential for significant rises along streams and rivers, with widespread flooding impacts possible through early next week,” the National Water Center said Thursday.

    Creeks and streams in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains remain the most vulnerable areas for flooding from rain and snowmelt, the Weather Prediction Center said.

    Roughly 17 million people are under flood watches in California and parts of Nevada as of late Thursday. Heavy rain had already begun Thursday, with the worst rainfall and most significant impacts expected to persist through the day Friday. Hourly rainfall rates will steadily increase in intensity across California from Thursday overnight through Friday morning, potentially reaching 1 inch per hour.

    The threat has pushed local officials to issue evacuation warnings and orders for some areas in the storm’s most precarious path as well as remind residents to prepare for yet another bout of severe weather – all while much of California remains in recovery mode from prior heavy snowfalls and deadly flooding in January. Additionally, California transportation officials have partially closed Interstate 5 and Highway 1, two major roads in the state.

    In the community of Felton in Santa Cruz County, resident Tom Fredericks lamented the fatigue from the unrelenting series of severe storms since the start of the year.

    “We’ve been working every week, every week when we can since then,” Fredericks told CNN affiliate KGO. “It’s just starting right now to feel like it was before the storms. So this is kind of discouraging to be facing it all over again.”

    In nearby Monterey County, nearly 40,000 homes and businesses – roughly 20% of customers tracked – were without power as of Thursday night, according to PowerOutage.us.

    In San Luis Obispo County, officials issued an evacuation order beginning Thursday night for residents south of the Arroyo Grande Creek Levee, urging them to seek higher ground for safety. A pet-friendly American Red Cross Shelter in the county is available to residents. Meanwhile, an evacuation warning remains in place north of the Arroyo Grande Creek Levee and near the Oceano Lagoon.

    Here’s where evacuation warnings are in effect:

    • Santa Cruz County: About 1,200 homes are affected by the evacuation warning in low-lying areas across Felton Grove, Paradise Park, Soquel Village and Rio Del Mar Flats as well as areas along Corralitos Creek, including the College-Lake-Holohan area, according to county officials.
    • Tulare County: Areas along the Kings River from the Fresno County line to the Kings County line should plan to evacuate, according to a statement from the county’s sheriff’s office. “Residents should prepare now, especially in areas at risk of being isolated by snow or road/bridge closures,” the sheriff’s office said. “Stock up on several days worth of food, water, medications and other necessary supplies.”
    • Mariposa County: Greeley Hill, El Portal, Bear Creek Cabins, Oak Fire burn scar, Creekside Apartments, Hornitos and La Grange are under evacuation warning, the county’ sheriff’s office said. “There is a potential threat to life and/or property. Rescue or lifesaving assistance may take longer than normal, and you may need to shelter in place for an extended duration,” officials said.
    • Merced County: Planada and Le Grand residents should prepare for possible evacuations and gather important documents, medication, devices and pets, the sheriff’s office said on Facebook. Shelters are available in Merced and Atwater, the post said.
    • Fresno County: Residents in eastern portions of the county should begin gathering belongings and be prepared for possible evacuation orders, the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post. “The first of a series of severe storms has now moved into our region. It is expected to deliver several inches of rain throughout the weekend. This rain, coupled with snow melt, will put a strain on lakes, rivers and streams,” the post noted.

    As of late Thursday, 34 of California’s 58 counties are under a state of emergency issued by the governor’s office due to previous storms and this week’s severe weather threat. The state also activated its flood operations center Thursday morning.

    Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office on Thursday also asked the White House to approve a Presidential Emergency Declaration to support state and local responses to the severe weather the state has been enduring since last month.

    “These storms have already caused significant damage in California from the substantial rain, snowfall, and river and urban flooding. It is expected the incoming atmospheric river system will bring heavier precipitation, creating greater impacts and compounding the complexities of response and recovery the affected counties that are still responding to effects of the December 2022-January 2023 winter storm event,” the governor’s request says.

    If approved, the emergency declaration would allow impacted counties to immediately access federal assistance to help protect public safety and property, the governor’s office said. The request for funds would apply to generators, road clearance equipment and potential sheltering and mass care assistance.

    Friday’s impacts come as millions in the storm’s path have not had time to bounce back from multiple rounds of recent steep snow that buried some neighborhoods and roads while leaving many stranded as they ran low on important supplies.

    From late December into January, many areas across the state were inundated with torrential rain from atmospheric rivers that lasted for consecutive days. The rainfall caused deadly flooding, mudslides and damaged critical infrastructure that has not been yet repaired in some places, which elevates the potential danger associated with this week’s storm.

    This week’s atmospheric rivers – which are long, narrow bands of moisture in the atmosphere that carry warm air and water vapor from the tropics – could possibly be even more threatening due to their warmth, forecasters have said.

    “The abnormally warm and wet conditions moving in are expected to cause rapid snowmelt. Combine this snowmelt with as much as 10 inches of rain in the 24 hours (from Thursday evening to Friday evening), and the potential for widespread flooding is considerable, especially in the High Risk areas,” the Weather Prediction Center said.

    Rainfall totals through Sunday morning could range from 1.5 to 3 inches for most urban areas with between 3 and 6 inches in the coast ranges and inland hills. Up 8 inches over the Santa Cruz Mountains and locally up to 12 inches over favored peaks and higher terrain of the Santa Lucia Mountains.”

    The looming forecast led some ski resorts to announce closings. Kirkwood Mountain Resort said it would not open Friday, as did the Northstar California Resort and the Heavenly Resort in South Lake Tahoe, on Nevada’s border with central California.

    Meanwhile, the Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center issued a backcountry avalanche warning for sections of Mono County, according to the National Weather Service in Reno, Nevada.

    Elsewhere in the West, snowfall was occurring early Friday across parts of Nevada, Oregon and Idaho, where 6 to 12 inches of now are possible over lower elevations and 1 to 2 feet of snow are possible at higher elevations. This snowfall is expected to move into Utah, western Colorado and Montana by Friday morning, when up to 2 feet of snowfall are also possible.

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  • Rain rates in California during newest storm may reach 1 inch per hour | CNN

    Rain rates in California during newest storm may reach 1 inch per hour | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Millions of Californians already hammered by ferocious snowfall were hit Thursday by a new storm, with torrential rain threatening to cause dangerous flooding and the Weather Prediction Center increasing its excessive rainfall outlook for parts of the state to a level 4 of 4.

    “If you have feet of snow on your roof, all of a sudden that’s going to get very, very heavy. That snow is going to absorb the rainfall,” CNN Meteorologist Chad Myers warned Thursday.

    “And then in the higher elevations, it will wash away some of that snowfall. So, rain on snow will begin to fill up parts of the San Joaquin Valley.”

    About 16.7 million people are under flood watches in California and slices of Nevada. Hourly rainfall rates will steadily increase in intensity across California from Thursday overnight through Friday morning, potentially reaching 1 inch per hour.

    The level 4 excessive rainfall warning is targeted to two sections in central California – the coast from Salinas southward to San Luis Obispo and areas in the foothills of the Sierras near Fresno – Thursday overnight into Friday. The last time the Bay Area and Central Coast were in “high risk” was in 2010, the National Weather Service office in San Francisco said.

    Much of the state is under some risk of excessive rainfall Thursday and Friday.

    “An atmospheric river will bring anomalous moisture to California Thursday and Friday. The combination of heavy precipitation and rapid snow melt below 5,000 feet will result in flooding,” the prediction center said Wednesday, adding that “numerous” floods are likely for millions.

    The most vulnerable areas for flooding from rain and snowmelt are creeks and streams in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, the prediction center said.

    Higher elevations will see heavy, wet snow. “This will lead to difficult travel, and combined with an already deep snowpack, may lead to increasing impacts from the depth and weight of the snow,” the prediction center said.

    The bleak forecast spurred officials across central and Northern California to urge residents to prepare, with residents in one area advised to stock up on essentials for two weeks. Others were asked to use sandbags to protect their properties and clear their waterways to lessen any flooding impacts.

    “We are asking people to watch their news, stay informed, have a full tank of gas in case they need to evacuate, get snow off of their roof if they can, if it’s safe,” Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis told CNN on Thursday. “And just be very vigilant and prepared, because we are in the era of extreme weather, and that’s what we are seeing this week.”

    Here’s what the storm could bring:

    • Heavy rainfall: The National Weather Service in San Francisco forecasts rainfall totals through Sunday morning will be from 1.5-3 inches for most urban areas with 3-6 inches in some hilly areas. As many as 8 inches could fall on the Santa Cruz Mountains and locally up to 12 inches over some peaks and higher terrain of the Santa Lucia Mountains. The National Weather Service in Los Angeles is forecasting 2-4 inches across Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, with some areas in the latter receiving as many as 10 inches through late Friday night. The Weather Prediction Center said: “The abnormally warm and wet conditions moving in are expected to cause rapid snowmelt.”

    • Ferocious winds: More than 15 million people across central and Northern California, northern Nevada and southwestern Idaho are under high wind alerts. Wind gusts could reach up to 55 mph across lower elevations and up to 70 mph across peaks and mountains. Strong winds could knock down power lines and trees – exacerbating thousands of existing power outages from previous storms that dumped heavy snow, particularly in higher elevations.

    • More intense snow: Parts of the Sierra Nevada above 8,000 feet could get hit with 8 feet of snow. And some higher elevations across southern Oregon and the Rocky Mountains in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming could get pounded by 2 feet of snowfall between Thursday and Friday.

    Already, 34 of California’s 58 counties are under a state of emergency issued by the governor’s office due to previous storms and this week’s severe weather. The state activated its flood operations center Thursday morning.

    The forecast also led some ski resorts to announce closings. Kirkwood Mountain Resort said it would not open Friday, as did the Northstar California resort and the Heavenly resort in South Lake Tahoe, on Nevada’s border with California.

    Meanwhile, the Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center issued a backcountry avalanche warning for sections of Mono County, according to the National Weather Service in Reno, Nevada.

    Many of the areas preparing for Thursday’s storm have not had a chance to recover from the multiple rounds of fierce snow that buried some neighborhoods and made roads inaccessible as residents ran low on essential supplies.

    In hard-hit San Bernardino County, one of the recent storms claimed the life of a resident in a car crash, the sheriff’s department told CNN on Wednesday.

    video thumbnail california snowbank 81year-old

    Grandson reveals 81-year-old’s reaction after surviving in snowbank for a week

    As the storm hits central California, some urban flooding along with flooding from the smaller creeks and streams is likely. Eventually, more roads are expected to flood as the main rivers rise, said Katrina Hand, a meteorologist at the weather service’s Sacramento office.

    San Francisco officials urged small businesses to clear storm drains, stock up on inventory, use sandbags and ensure equipment is properly stored. They also suggested employers consider adjusting their work schedules for workers’ safety.

    In Merced, crews tried to clear storm drains and fortify creek banks ahead of the storm.

    City officials said flooding from previous, deadly rounds of atmospheric rivers that battered much of the state in January has made the city’s water ways unsafe.

    Atmospheric rivers are long, narrow bands of moisture in the atmosphere that carry warm air and water vapor from the tropics.

    “The city urges all residents to avoid these waterways and walking paths,” Merced officials said. “Because of ground saturation and erosion from prior storms, expect to see more debris in creek flows.”

    In San Luis Obispo, city officials on Wednesday said residents should be informed on flood insurance policies and be prepared to protect their homes. On Thursday, they issued an evacuation order for residents south of the Arroyo Grande Creek Levee.

    Evacuation warnings were also issued for residents in low-lying areas of Santa Cruz County and for people in Tulare County.

    In the Big Sur area, officials urged residents to have enough food and other essentials for at least two weeks. The Big Sur area, a roughly 90-mile stretch of California’s central coast, is one of the area’s renowned tourist attractions with rugged cliffs, mountains and hidden beaches along the Pacific Coast Highway.

    In Kern County, home to Bakersfield, fire officials urged residents to create emergency kits and to be aware of escape routes and safe areas to seek shelter if needed. Officials also encouraged the use of sandbags to protect properties.

    And in Sacramento, city officials said they intend to open overnight warming centers beginning Friday in preparation for the expected heavy rainfall and low temperatures.

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  • At least 13 people are dead as severe storms bring tornadoes and flooding to South, now sweeps across Northeast | CNN

    At least 13 people are dead as severe storms bring tornadoes and flooding to South, now sweeps across Northeast | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    At least 13 people have died in multiple states due to severe weather across the country as a powerful storm system that brought golf ball-sized hail and tornadoes to the South continues to march Saturday across the Northeast.

    The storm spurred wind gusts strong enough to topple tractor-trailer trucks, leaving more than 1 million people without power and threatening to bring more torrential rain, tornadoes and heavy snow.

    The storm system is the same that dumped feet of snow across parts of California, leaving some trapped in their homes with snow piled as high as second-story windows and prompting the governor to declare a state of emergency in 13 counties. Many of those affected are now bracing for another round of snow and rain on Saturday from a new system.

    At least five Kentuckians have died in connection with the severe weather that hit the area Friday, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said during a news briefing on Saturday.

    CNN previously reported four deaths across the commonwealth in Edmonson, Simpson, Logan and Fayette counties. The additional death being reported was an 84-year-old man in Bath County, Beshear said.

    Beshear said it will take days to restore power in some places, and that as of 11:11 a.m. ET Saturday, 396,517 Kentuckians were without power. He said 1,874 Kentuckians are under a boil water advisory with five water districts working under limited operations.

    In Tennessee, two people died. A man was killed after a tree fell on the vehicle he was riding in, the Humphreys County Emergency Management Agency told CNN via email. An elderly woman in Hendersonville died after a tree fell on her while she was walking with a neighbor Friday, according to a news release from the City of Hendersonville.

    A high school student in Sumner County, Tennessee was critically injured Friday by a tree that fell during severe storms and is not expected to survive, local officials said Saturday. According to Liberty Creek High School, Brooks was being kept on life support until Sunday. “Even in her passing, she will give back to others by being an organ donor,” the school announced. “Please join us in praying for this family and all who were fortunate enough to know her.”

    Three other people died in Alabama, one in Arkansas, one in Mississippi and one in California, according to officials.

    Nearly 15 million people were under winter weather alerts as of 8:45 a.m. ET Saturday along the West Coast and in New England, with another 25 million under wind alerts.

    According to PowerOutage.us, about 1.2 million customers were without power Saturday, with Kentucky, Michigan, Tennessee, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia reporting the most outages.

    Heavy snow is forecast through Saturday afternoon in northern New England, according to the National Weather Service, with a rain/snow mix in Massachusetts.

    “Storm total amounts of 6 to 12 inches looks to occur within much of the Mohawk Valley, Adirondacks, Lake George Saratoga Region and southern Vermont,” the National Weather Service in Albany, New York, wrote.

    A tornado was confirmed at 11:12 a.m. CT Friday just south of Reidland, Kentucky, moving northeast at 55 mph.

    Flash flood warnings at one point stretched about 400 miles across portions of Missouri and Indiana.

    Meanwhile, more than 300,000 people remain under flood watches from Arkansas to Ohio.

    In Texas, Louisiana and Alabama, the storms damaged homes and businesses and caused flight disruptions at airports Thursday.

    Six tornadoes were reported during Thursday’s storms, including five in Texas and one in Louisiana, where dozens of homes were damaged in the city of Shreveport. Across Texas and Oklahoma, there were 18 hail reports, with the largest hailstones reportedly 1.75 inches in diameter, or roughly the size of a golf ball.

    After a brief reprieve from back-to-back winter storms that have brought unseasonably cold temperatures and prompted rare blizzard warnings in parts of California, snow is again forecast in the higher elevations along the West Coast.

    “An additional several feet of snow will be possible in these areas, with the heaviest of these totals likely in the northern Sierra Range. On Sunday, precipitation will spread inland, with heavy snow possible in the higher terrains of the Intermountain West,” the weather service explained.

    By the end of the weekend, 1 to 5 feet of snow is possible across some northern areas, including the Sierra Nevada mountain range.

    But many communities blanketed by the last round of snow have yet to recover as snowfall blocked critical roads, trapped them in their homes and damaged vital businesses such as grocery stores.

    An 80-year-old woman, Lois Barton, died in a “weather-related” incident in Placer County, sheriff’s office spokesperson Angela Musallam told CNN. She did not share the circumstances of the death, though where the incident occurred saw heavy snow and temperatures around freezing on Tuesday, CNN meteorologists said.

    State Route 138 winds through snow-covered trees near Hesperia, California on March 1, 2023.

    Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a state of emergency in 13 counties this week, including hard-hit San Bernardino County where the National Guard arrived Thursday to assist with rescues of snowbound residents and shovel snow off the roads and from rooftops.

    A number of structure fires in San Bernardino County appear to be storm-related, the county fire department told CNN. The department said the number of fires is “atypical” but did not provide an exact number.

    Gas leaks are believed to be responsible for several house fires in the mountain communities, according to Fire Chief Dan Munsey. Many of them are in areas with unpassable roads. Firefighters are responding to homes using snowcats and often drudging in by foot with shovels and hoses and digging hydrants out of the snow to extinguish flames, Munsey said.

    CNN has reached out to Southern California Gas Co., a major provider in the area, on reports of gas leaks.

    In the San Bernardino community of Crestline, residents have been immobilized by the copious snowfall and have started to become worried about access to supplies as their sole local grocery store has closed after its roof caved in from heavy snow, resident Paul Solo told CNN.

    Emergency crews are still out in force in the snow-laden mountains, eager to clear roads and reach isolated residents with food and supplies.

    Rescuers are supplied with meals-ready-to-eat to distribute with those unable to get food, San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus said in a press conference on Friday. First responders will be setting up food distribution points and a convoy with food and other supplies to restock supermarkets will be escorted up the mountain, he added.

    Nearly 100 inches of snow have fallen on Crestline and nearby Lake Arrowhead in recent days. Aerial footage from CNN affiliate KCAL shows neighborhoods with indiscernible streets and homes with snow piled to second-story windows.

    The only way to get around is by shoveling walkways for emergency exits, Solo said. He added, “Everyone every day has been shoveling, and then it’ll snow another two feet.”

    Solo believes it could be another week or two before the snow is cleared.

    “Until then, we are trapped in our house. We couldn’t even leave if we wanted to.”

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  • California declares state of emergency in 13 counties after brutal winter storm traps residents | CNN

    California declares state of emergency in 13 counties after brutal winter storm traps residents | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Some California residents remain trapped inside their homes after a winter storm dumped feet of snow across the Golden State, prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom to issue a state of emergency in 13 counties, including hard-hit San Bernardino County.

    Authorities there had conducted almost 100 rescues by Wednesday evening, San Bernardino County Fire Chief Dan Munsey said in a news conference, though authorities have not learned of any serious injuries or deaths.

    “We’re responding to medical calls. We’re responding to fires in these trapped vehicles. We are going to people’s houses where they’ve had trees through their houses or some sort of roof collapse and we are evacuating them to our evacuation shelters,” Munsey said.

    Just over 70,000 homes and businesses remained without power early Thursday, days after the first round of winter storms hit California, according to PowerOutage.us. And while the state is getting a brief reprieve from the snow through the end of the week, another system is expected to move into Northern California this weekend.

    Newsom declared a state of emergency for San Bernardino County and 12 others – among them Los Angeles and Santa Barbara counties – late Wednesday, with his office saying in a statement that a significant number of state personnel had responded to support San Bernardino County.

    The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services has been working to bring additional snow plows and road crews to the county, and personnel from Cal Fire and the California National Guard “are readied to support operations.”

    It could take a week to 10 days to dig out the mountain communities hampered by the heavy snow, officials warned in a news conference Wednesday. Mountain residents were still unable to access roads Wednesday, per fire department spokesperson Eric Sherwin. The county has about 500 miles of tight, winding roads throughout the mountain areas that need to be plowed, county Public Works Director Brendon Biggs said.

    Many parts of California were buried under a significant amount of snow in recent days, and some places received more than 100 inches in the last week, according to the National Weather Service, leading authorities to warn residents about possible avalanches. Residents in a three-story apartment building in Olympic Valley had to be evacuated after it was struck by an avalanche Tuesday evening, engulfing the bottom two stories, the sheriff’s office said on Facebook. The building’s occupants were uninjured.

    Huntington Lake in the Sierra Nevada saw 144 inches of snow, per a report from the Fresno County Office of Emergency Services, which reported 10 to 12 feet of snow near China Peak, leading to the closure of Highway 168.

    In Southern California, 106 inches of snow were recorded since February 22 at Mount Baldy, outside of Los Angeles. Of that 106 inches, 29 fell in the past two days, according to CNN meteorologist Taylor Ward, while the other 77 inches fell late last week and through the weekend.

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  • Tornadoes and severe winds strike central US as another round of rain and snow is set to pummel the West and North | CNN

    Tornadoes and severe winds strike central US as another round of rain and snow is set to pummel the West and North | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    As severe storms prompted overnight tornado reports in parts of the central US, a barrage of snow, rain and harsh wind is forecast Monday in places from the West Coast to the Great Lakes, including some still without power following a similar string of severe weather last week.

    More than 231,000 US homes and businesses were without power as of early Monday, according to PowerOutage.US – about half in Michigan, which is bracing for another round of ice and snow to hit the region Monday.

    Tens of thousands also lacked power in Oklahoma, where at least seven tornadoes and 12 injuries were reported in Sunday’s severe weather. Two tornadoes were reported in Kansas.

    More than 100 other storm reports – including wind and hail – were recorded in parts of Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas as hurricane-force winds and severe thunderstorms tore through. A gust of 114 mph was recorded In Memphis, Texas – equivalent to sustained wind in a Category 3 hurricane.

    “I got up and then the wind just threw me back. And I’m screaming,” Frances Tabler of Norman, Oklahoma, told CNN affiliate KOCO. “It was like a blizzard inside the house.”

    Early Monday, flipped cars and downed trees littered neighborhoods where roofs had been torn from homes, CNN’s Ed Lavandera reported.

    In anticipation of severe winds and potential hail Sunday night into Monday, a unit at McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita, Kansas, relocated most of its aircraft to protect them and ensure they can still be deployed if needed, the base announced.

    As the storm shifts north by Monday afternoon, a slight risk for severe weather – possibly a few tornadoes and wind gusts – could impact cities including Indianapolis, Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio.

    In the West – where last week’s storms prompted rare blizzard warnings and road flooding in California – a separate system of rain and high-elevation snow will push from the Pacific Northwest down into California and into the Rockies through Monday.

    Nine western states are under winter weather alerts Monday as heavy snowfall is forecast across the region, including up to 10 inches in Washington state’s Cascades by early Tuesday; 1 to 3 feet in high elevations and mountain peaks of western Oregon; and 1 to 3 feet in mountainous areas of the Rockies.

    A blizzard warning remains in effect for the Sierra Nevada mountains in California, which could see between 2 and 6 feet of snow.

    Yosemite National Park was closed Saturday due to severe weather and will not reopen until at least Wednesday as the multiday blizzard warning remains in effect across Yosemite Valley, the park announced. The valley could see as much as 55 to 84 inches of snow by Wednesday, the park said.

    The storm system impacting Oklahoma and Ohio is expected to push into the Northeast by Monday afternoon, where interior parts of the region could see widespread snowfall totals of 6 to 12 inches.

    Meanwhile, the South is anticipating another week of unusually warm winter temperatures after steaming under record-breaking highs last week.

    Dozens of daily high temperature records could be broken again in the coming days as areas of southern Texas and the Florida Peninsula could see temperatures into the 90s.

    As the National Weather Service reviews the severe weather reports from Sunday into Monday morning, it will work to determine whether the system can be classified as a derecho, which forecasters previously said was possible.

    A derecho is a widespread, long-lived windstorm that typically causes damage in one direction across a relatively straight path, according to the weather service. To be classified as a derecho, the stretch of wind damage should extend more than 240 miles and include wind gusts of at least 58 mph along most of its length, it says.

    In total, more than 115 storm reports were made Sunday across the Southern Plains, mainly of wind across Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma. This also includes 14 hail reports in those states, with several hailstones reportedly 1.75 inches in diameter.

    Nine tornadoes were reported in Oklahoma and Kansas, including one in the Oklahoma city of Norman, where police warned of road closures, downed power lines and debris.

    Twelve weather-related injuries were reported early Monday, the Norman Police Department said. None was critical, the department said after conferring with area hospitals.

    Students on the campus of the University of Oklahoma in Norman were told to immediately take shelter Sunday evening as the area was under a tornado warning, which was lifted later that night.

    Officials in Oklahoma are still assessing the damage, though the most concentrated impacts appear to be in Norman, Shawnee and possibly Cheyenne, said Keli Cain, public affairs director for the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security.

    Roughly a dozen families displaced by a tornado in Liberal, Kansas, are being accommodated and about 10 trailers were also damaged, City Manager Rusty Varnado said. At least one person was injured by broken glass, he said, noting the injuries are minor.

    Freezing rain, snow and ice across the Great Lakes region and parts of the Midwest last week resulted in perilous travel conditions, road closures and significant power outages that disrupted daily life for many.

    This week, the Great Lakes are poised to be hit all over again, including Michigan, where about 130,000 homes and businesses still did not have power early Monday after the prior storms damaged trees and utility lines.

    Ice-covered tree branches lie on the ground Thursday after an ice storm in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

    Utility company DTE, one of Michigan’s largest electricity providers, said 630,000 of its customers have been impacted by the storms so far. By Sunday night, power was restored to about 600,000 of their customers, the utility said.

    Another round of mixed precipitation is expected to move into the region Monday, with those under winter weather alerts possibly seeing between 2 and 8 inches of snowfall.

    As the storm moves east, winter storm watches are also in effect for parts of interior New York and New England through Wednesday afternoon. In total, these isolated areas can see up to 10 inches of snowfall.

    Boston, which is under a winter weather advisory from Monday evening until Tuesday evening, is expected to get 2 to 5 inches of snowfall.

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  • Snowfall tops 6.5 feet and rainfall tops 5 inches across southern California | CNN

    Snowfall tops 6.5 feet and rainfall tops 5 inches across southern California | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    A winter storm dumped massive amounts of precipitation across southern California this weekend, including more than 6.5 feet of snow to Mountain High and more than 5 inches of rain to Cucamonga Canyon.

    The hefty snowfall totals included 5 feet to Snow Valley, 57 inches to Bear Mountain Snow Summit, 50 to 55 inches to Wrightwood Acorn Canyon, 45 inches to Green Valley Lake, 38 inches to Mount Baldy, and 36 inches to Lake Arrowhead, according to the National Weather Service in San Diego.

    In addition, heavy rainfall brought several inches of rain to the area, including more than 4 inches in Holy Jim Canyon, Lower Silverado Canyon and Henshaw Dam; more than three inches in La Jolla Amago, Costa Mesa, Mount Woodson and Carlsbad Airport; and more than two inches to John Wayne Airport, Escondido, San Bernardino and Temecula, according to the service’s 5-day rainfall reports.

    The precipitation came as a rare blizzard warning was in effect for parts of southern California and the Los Angeles region, spawning unfamiliar wintry conditions at higher elevations.

    The same storm system is moving east and is expected to produce a significant damaging wind event across the central US on Sunday. More than 20 million people are under the threat of severe storms Sunday from western Texas to Illinois, including Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Kansas City, Fort Worth, and St. Louis.

    Meanwhile, a new winter storm is set to bring more rain and snow to the western US, starting with the Pacific Northwest on Sunday.

    More than a foot of snow is possible with the system across the Sierras and Cascades. A second system will be right on the first’s heels, pushing inland across the Pacific Northwest tonight bringing even more snow.

    An additional 1 to 2 feet of snow is possible across the Cascades, Sierras, and Rockies through Tuesday. Isolated areas of the Sierras could see up to 3 feet.

    The snowstorms will create dangerous or impossible travel conditions across the western mountain ranges through the beginning of this week.

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  • Rare blizzard warnings issued in Southern California as Midwest digs out from powerful winter storm | CNN

    Rare blizzard warnings issued in Southern California as Midwest digs out from powerful winter storm | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    A slow-moving winter storm brought snow, rain and high winds to the West on Friday, prompting rare blizzard warnings in Southern California.

    In its first-ever blizzard warning, the National Weather Service in San Diego said the San Bernardino County mountains could see 3 to 5 feet of snow through Saturday morning.

    Blizzard warnings were also issued for Los Angeles and Ventura counties through Saturday afternoon. Up to 5 feet of snow is possible with some isolated areas seeing between 7 and 8 feet. The National Weather Service’s Los Angeles office issued its last blizzard warning on February 4, 1989.

    “This storm system will be unusually cold, and snow levels will be very low. In fact, areas very close to the Pacific Coast and also into the interior valleys that are not accustomed to seeing snow, may see some accumulating snowfall,” the National Weather Service said early Friday.

    “For Friday morning through Saturday afternoon, plan to hunker down and avoid travel. The worst impacts from flooding and blizzard conditions occur Friday afternoon through Saturday morning, when any non-essential or non-emergency travel should be postponed!” the San Diego weather service said.

    The National Weather Service on Friday afternoon issued a flash flood warning with a “considerable flash flood damage threat,” for Los Angeles and surrounding areas. This is the second highest level of flood warning from the NWS, only topped by a flood emergency.

    Over 6 million people are covered by the warning, including downtown Los Angeles, Pasadena, Beverly Hills, Burbank and Santa Barbara.

    “Flash flooding is already occurring…and is expected to worsen into the evening hours,” the NWS warning said.

    The weather service also warned that debris flows are likely from previous burn scars in the region.

    Up to 5 inches of rain could fall across lower elevations of the greater Los Angeles area while the mountains could see 6 inches. In the San Diego area, up to 3 inches of rain is possible in lower elevations while the mountains could get 7 inches.

    The storm has put more than 20 million people under flood watches and more than 30 million people under high wind alerts across Southern California – roughly two months after the state endured rounds of deadly flooding. The highest gusts in the warning areas could reach 75 mph.

    The storm system will impact Northern California early in the day Friday. Up to 6 inches of snow is possible across lower elevations and up to 3 feet could fall on the region’s highest peaks before conditions begin to improve by Friday evening as the storm slips to the south.

    The Sierra Nevada Mountains could see up to 6 feet of snow Friday into Saturday and in Nevada, a blizzard warning for northwestern Nye County will be in effect Friday morning through early Saturday.

    “Heavy snow, winds gusting as high as 60 mph, will cause zero visibility due to blowing and drifting snow,” the weather service warned.

    Snow has already hit the Santa Cruz Mountain, resident Ngugi Kihara told CNN on Friday.

    “We never seen this much snow up here,” Kihara said. “We woke up to it. It started yesterday but picked up a lot overnight. Lots of trees are falling and all the roads around us are closed. Power is out and has been mostly gone since Tuesday.”

    Children revel in the rare snowfall in Yucaipa with a view of the San Bernardino County mountains in California.

    Power outages were already adding up in California early Friday, with nearly 75,000 customers in the dark, largely in the northern region. That accounts for a small portion of the more than 820,000 power outages recorded nationwide as the day began, according to PowerOutage.us. The majority of the outages – nearly 720,000 – were in Michigan, where freezing rain and ice this week damaged utility lines and trees.

    The storm struck the West as a ferocious, multiday winter storm began to subside after wreaking havoc in several states across the West, northern Great Plains the Great Lakes region and New England.

    Several counties in Wyoming went into search-and-rescue mode after more than 40 inches of snow fell in the southern parts of the state over the course of several days and motorists were trapped in heavy snow, the state highway patrol said on Twitter.

    Ice covered tree branches are seen on the ground after a freezing ice storm in Ypsilanti, Michigan, on Thursday.

    Minneapolis, Minnesota, saw more than 13 inches in a three-day period this week. More than 160 vehicle crashes were reported statewide, and dozens of cars spun off roads Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Minnesota State Patrol said in a series of tweets.

    Minneapolis officials have declared a one-day snow emergency beginning Friday, and city crews have been plowing and treating streets.

    Since the storm began Monday evening, cumulative snowfall reached dozens of inches in some cities, including 48 inches in Battle Lake, Wyoming, 32 inches in Dupuyer, Montana, and 29 inches in Park City, Utah.

    But snow was not the storm’s only culprit. Severe icing was also a danger.

    Ann Arbor, Michigan, recorded 0.65 inches, while Fransville, Wisconsin, measured 0.75 inches of ice.

    And in New England, icy conditions likely contributed to a massive 15-vehicle pileup on the Massachusetts Turnpike Thursday night, according to a tweet by the Massachusetts State Police.

    The chain-reaction crash involved multiple personal vehicles and tractor trailers, officials said. Troopers, firefighters and EMS responded to the incident and multiple victims had to be transported to the hospital, according to the tweet.

    As northern regions of the country were measuring snowfall and ice accumulation, parts of the Southeast were experiencing record-high heat.

    More than 50 daily record highs were recorded in the Southeast Thursday.

    • St. Simons Island, Georgia, saw a high temperature of 88 degrees, an all-time February record.
    • Tupelo, Mississippi, reached a high temperature of 87 degrees, another an all-time February record. The previous record of 84 degrees was set Wednesday.
    • Raleigh, North Carolina, saw a high temperature of 85 degrees, which was an all-time February record. The previous record of 84 degrees was set in 1977.

    The dueling winter storm and southern heat wave created a stark 100-degree temperature difference between the Northern Rockies and the South earlier this week.

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  • Blizzards, snow and ice disrupt hundreds of US flights | CNN

    Blizzards, snow and ice disrupt hundreds of US flights | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Another day of harsh winter weather brought continued air travel misery across the United States on Thursday with hundreds of flights canceled and many more delayed by snow storms and plunging temperatures.

    As of 7:00 a.m. ET, some 748 airplane departures had been scrapped and 724 delayed within the US, according to flight tracking site FlightAware. The schedule disruptions come a day after more than 1,700 flights were dropped and and 6,700 delayed.

    Blizzards, snow dumps and ice have hit a huge swath of the western and northern US stretching from California to New York and New England, with much of the upper Midwest experiencing particularly heavy snowfalls. More than 60 million people were under winter weather alerts early Thursday.

    Minneapolis-St. Paul International airport was the worst affected with 132 departures and 94 arrivals struck off. Over the border in Canada, Toronto’s Pearson International airport was showing 68 departure and 55 arrival cancellations. Delta was the worst affected carrier, accounting for 198 of overall cancellations and 107 delays.

    Chicago O’Hare International, Boston Logan International, Portland International and Denver International were also showing significant impact.

    On Wednesday, Southwest Airlines issued winter weather waivers for about a dozen airports. Delta Air Lines has issued waivers for Upper Midwest winter weather and Rockies and Mountain regions winter weather. American Airlines and United have also issued winter weather waivers for travel this week.

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  • It’s never been this warm in February. Here’s why that’s not a good thing | CNN

    It’s never been this warm in February. Here’s why that’s not a good thing | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    As parts of the West and Northern US face a winter storm with blizzard conditions and significant snowfall, much of the rest of the country is experiencing a summer-like heat that has never been felt before during the month of February.

    More than 130 cities from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes could set new records for daily and monthly high temperatures this week. Highs will climb up to 80 degrees as far north as Ohio and West Virginia — certainly unusual, but becoming less so in the warming climate.

    Here’s a stark example: Before this decade, Charleston, West Virginia, had only hit 80 degrees before March three times in more than 100 years of record-keeping. But this week’s incredible warmth will mean that four of the last six years will have logged temperatures of 80 degrees, which is its normal high on June 1, in February.

    Record warmth in February — a time that’s supposed to still feel like winter — might not sound like such a bad thing, but its negative consequences spread across the plant world, sports, tourism and agriculture. And it is another clear sign that our planet is warming rapidly, experts say.

    “Whenever we get these events, we should always be thinking there’s the possibility or likelihood that human-induced climate change is increasing the likelihood of strange weather,” Richard Seager, climate researcher at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, told CNN. “The more it goes on, the more they can bring such tremendous damage.”

    A satellite image taken on February 13 shows just around 7% of the Great Lakes are covered in ice -- significantly lower than average for this time of year.

    On the Great Lakes, ice coverage reached a record low for this time of the year — the same time that the annual maximum extent of ice usually occurs. As of last week, only 7% of the five freshwater lakes were covered in ice, a sharp difference from the 35 to 40% ice cover typically expected in mid-to-late February, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

    Great Lakes ice is on a downward trend, NOAA scientists report. A recent study found a 70% decline in the lakes’ ice cover between 1973 and 2017.

    The decline in Great Lakes ice each winter may not seem like it has any harmful impact, but that ice acts as a buffer for large, wind-driven waves in the winter, scientists have reported. Without the ice, the coastlines are more susceptible to erosion and flooding.

    Ayumi Fujisaki-Manome, a research scientist at NOAA’s Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research at the University of Michigan, said low ice coverage could also set the stage for another severe lake-effect snow storm like the one Buffalo, New York, experienced in December.

    “The moisture and heat from the lake surface water are absorbed into the atmosphere by storm systems, and then fall back to the ground as snow in the winter,” Fujisaki-Manome said in a statement.

    The Lake Champlain shoreline on February 16. The lake near the access area is covered with ice, but officials are warning anglers to stay off the lake because unseasonably warm temperatures have made it unsafe.

    The thin ice has already had deadly consequences in New England.

    At Vermont’s Lake Champlain, the annual ice fishing tournament was cancelled last weekend when three fishermen died after falling through the ice. One man’s body was found hours after he was expected to return home from the lake, while the other two died after their utility vehicle broke through the ice.

    Montpelier, Vermont, had its warmest January on record this year since 1948, with Burlington recording its fifth warmest January since 1884, according to the Burlington National Weather Service.

    Robert Wilson, a professor of geography and environment at Syracuse University, said the Northeast as a whole is now a “fast-warming region,” with winter seasons warming faster than summers due to the climate crisis.

    And he underscored how this trend is threatening some of New England’s most cherished winter activities.

    “In coming decades, winter — as most people understand it — will get shorter and warmer, with less snow and more rain,” Wilson said. “This poses a serious threat to winter recreation: snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, and downhill skiing.”

    Daffodils bloom in Norfolk, Virginia, on Tuesday.

    Plants are blooming way earlier than usual across much of the country, a clear sign that spring is either right around the corner — or it has already arrived, in some places.

    “Spring is coming early in much of the Southern and Eastern US,” Brad Rippey, meteorologist with the US Department of Agriculture, told CNN. “Here in the mid-Atlantic, that means everything from budding trees to crocuses in bloom to spring peepers making lots of noise — and in February, no less.”

    Many plants species — including daffodils, witch-hazel, forsythia and even cherry blossoms — are beginning to leaf out in the East. Theresa Crimmins, director of the USA National Phenology Network, said it’s the plants responding to very early warm temperatures.

    “Plants, especially those of temperate systems, respond to a number of cues in order to wake up in the spring, including exposure to chill in the winter, exposure to warmth in the spring, and day length,” she told CNN.

    Dead or dying peach trees at Carlson Orchards in Massachusetts. Temperatures dropped below freezing in recent weeks, after abnormal warmth in January, threatening the crop.

    If another cold snap occurs after an early warm spell, Crimmins said it could be disruptive and damaging for the plants’ cycle. As flower buds develop, many species lose their ability to tolerate cold temperatures, which means a freeze could kill blooms and leave fruit crops and other commodities vulnerable to spring freezes.

    Rippey said warm winters followed by a spring freeze has become more common in recent years. In 2017, for instance, a severe spring freeze in March damaged several fruit crops — peaches, blueberries, apples and strawberries — in states including Georgia and South Carolina, which carried an economic toll of roughly $1.2 billion.

    “As nice as it feels to have temperatures in the 70s and 80s this time of year, the fact that it’s not ‘normal’ can have a profound impact on the ecosystem,” Rippey said. “Even a typical spring freeze can damage commercial and back-yard fruit crops that have been pushed into blooming by late-winter warmth.”

    India issued its first heatwave alert, with temperatures in some states reaching 39 degrees Celsius (102 Fahrenheit) – up to 9 degrees Celsius (16.2 Fahrenheit) above normal, according to data released by the India Meteorological Department on Monday.

    “The heatwave warnings as early as February is a scary situation,” Krishna AchutaRao, a professor at the Centre for Atmospheric Sciences at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, told CNN.

    It has raised fears of a repeat of last year’s deadly heatwave, which scorched swaths of India and Pakistan.

    Blistering heat has devastating consequences for people’s health, for water supplies and for crops; last year, crop yields were reduced by as much as a third in some parts of the country. As temperatures soared last spring, India banned exports of wheat, dashing hopes that the world’s second-largest wheat producer would fill the supply gap caused by the war in Ukraine.

    Commuters cover their faces with clothes to protect themselves from sun as temperatures soar in Hyderabad, India, on Wednesday.

    This February, with high temperatures hitting wheat-producing states, including Rajasthan and Gujarat, India has set up a committee to monitor the impact of rising temperatures on the crop, according to Reuters.

    Europe, too, has seen unusually high temperatures, kicking off 2023 with an extreme winter heatwave that broke January temperature records in several countries. Low levels of snow and rainfall have fueled concerns about the region’s rivers and lakes.

    The River Po, which winds through northern Italy’s agricultural heartland, fed by snow from the Alps and rainfall in the spring, is at very low levels, while water in Lake Garda in northern Italy has reached record lows. There are fears Italy, which declared a state of emergency last year after its worst drought in 70 years, may face another drought.

    The unusually warm weather has also left ski resorts across the Alps with little or no snow. In February, top skiers wrote an open letter to the International Ski and Snowboard Federation demanding action on the climate crisis.

    “The seasons have shifted,” they wrote. “Our sport is threatened existentially.”

    While ski resorts have adapted to warming by relying on artificial snow – a process that uses a lot of water and energy – Wilson noted that resorts would still need cold nighttime temperatures to make it.

    “The long-term survival of skiing and other winter recreation will depend on nations lowering their carbon emissions to avoid the more dire consequences and severe warming in the future,” he said.

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  • Emergency measures enacted as ‘epic’ blast of cold air moves into the Northeast | CNN

    Emergency measures enacted as ‘epic’ blast of cold air moves into the Northeast | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    A brutal blast of dangerously cold winds is expected to sweep across the Northeast and New England on Friday, prompting officials to close schools and activate emergency plans as the region braces for record-breaking sub-zero temperatures.

    Frigid air feeling as cold as 32 degrees Fahrenheit below zero across much of the region will be combined with gusty winds, a nasty double-whammy that could lead to frostbite in as little as 10 minutes in some areas.

    “Temperatures in most regions will likely have their highest temperatures of the day before sunrise as temperatures will fall throughout the day Friday. Strong winds will bring dangerously cold temperatures, with the peak of the cold in the Northeast occurring late Friday to Saturday morning,” CNN Meteorologist Taylor Ward said.

    The severe cold has put more than 15 million people in the region under wind chill warnings or advisories. Wind chill indicates how cold the air may feel, and the weather service issues such warnings when winds are expected to feel as cold as 25 degrees Fahrenheit below zero.

    The cold spell is expected to begin subsiding by Sunday when temperatures will likely rise again. In the meantime, officials across several states have begun imploring residents to stay indoors and have ramped up warming center efforts to accommodate some of the most vulnerable to the cold.

    Schools in Buffalo, New York, and at least three districts in Massachusetts decided to cancel classes Friday as a precautionary measure for students and staff’s safety. The city of Boston is also under a cold emergency Friday through Sunday.

    “With extreme weather conditions and many of our students commuting to and from school, walking and waiting for public transportation outdoors, we have made the decision to close for the day,” Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper said in a statement.

    Officials in New York’s Erie County – home to Buffalo – issued a code blue, which allows for those experiencing homelessness to seek shelter overnight when temperatures plummet below 32 degrees. In addition to opening three overnight shelters in the county, there are also daytime warming centers available.

    The extreme cold is moving in on Buffalo weeks after blizzard conditions wreaked havoc on Erie County during Christmas weekend, killing least 39 people. The South is also struggling with a deadly ice storm that made road conditions miserable this week, claiming the lives of at least eight people in two states.

    “Please dress appropriately and don’t go out for extended periods in order to avoid frostbite or hypothermia,” Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said online.

    In surrounding states, warming centers are expected to be available in Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Vermont, officials said.

    All of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut are under wind chill alerts. Northern New Jersey, northeast Pennsylvania and much of New York state outside of New York City and Long Island are also under wind chill threat.

    “Very dangerous wind chills are likely and widespread wind chill warnings and advisories are already in effect for all of New England and parts of the Northeast,” the National Weather Service said Thursday. “The potential exists for numerous record low temperatures Saturday morning.”

    Maine will likely bear the brunt of the storm in terms of longevity as well as severity at times, with more than 70,000 people in the northern portion of the state under blizzard warnings, according to the National Weather Service.

    “Extreme cold and wind producing dangerously low wind chills Friday into Saturday. Blizzard conditions in blowing snow across open areas,” the National Weather Service in Caribou, Maine, said.

    Here’s what else is forecast in places with wind chill warnings:

    • Bangor, Maine: Temperatures will begin dropping after midnight Friday and reach their lowest of minus 21 degrees Fahrenheit during the early morning hours Saturday.
    • Boston: The winds will feel as cold as 32 degrees Fahrenheit below zero, with below-zero temperatures lasting from Friday night through Saturday morning.
    • Burlington, Vermont: Temperatures will dip to minus 15 degrees Fahrenheit, with the coldest winds feeling like 41 degrees below zero.
    • Manchester, New Hampshire: Temperatures will remain below zero beginning Friday evening into Saturday morning, with the coldest being minus 13 degrees Fahrenheit. The coldest winds will feel like 40 degrees Fahrenheit below zero.
    • Mt. Washington, New Hampshire: The highest peak in the Northeast may face gusts of over 130 mph early Saturday morning. This combined with temperatures of minus 40 degrees or lower will create wind chills as cold as minus 100 degrees.

    Elsewhere, New York City will see single-digit temperatures, with the coldest at 8 degrees Saturday morning. Winds could feel as low as 7 degrees below zero, with Friday night into Saturday being the coldest period.

    Farther south, an ice storm lashed parts of several states including Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Tennessee this week.

    Layers upon layers of ice, sleet and freezing rain over the course of multiple consecutive days made driving conditions life-threatening and snapped many tree branches and limbs that eventually knocked down power lines for tens of thousands.

    As of early Friday, more than 250,000 homes and businesses in Texas were still without power following the storm, according to tracking site PowerOutage.us. About 60,000 homes and businesses in neighboring Arkansas were also in the dark.

    The ice storm’s impact on roads made for deadly conditions this week.

    In Oklahoma, two people were killed in separate crashes after they lost control of their trucks on icy roads.

    And in Texas, three people were killed near Brownfield after a driver of a truck lost control Wednesday morning on an icy part of US Highway 380 and rolled into a ditch. The driver and two of his passengers were killed, the Texas Department of Public Safety said.

    Another driver died near Eldorado, Texas, after losing control of her truck, the public safety department said.

    One person was killed in a 10-car pile up in south Austin, the city’s fire department said.

    In Arlington, Texas, one person was killed after their vehicle rolled over, police said.

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  • The deadly ice storm crippling much of the South leaves more than 300,000 Texans without power in the frigid cold | CNN

    The deadly ice storm crippling much of the South leaves more than 300,000 Texans without power in the frigid cold | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Treacherous road conditions are now linked to three deaths in Texas as a wave of ice and sleet continues to hammer parts of the southern and central US into the overnight hours.

    A 49-year-old woman was killed this week when she lost control of her truck on an icy road north of Eldorado, the Texas Department of Public Safety told CNN on Wednesday.

    Two other deaths were previously linked to the storm that coated Texas cities with sleet or ice. In south Austin, one person died Tuesday morning in a 10-car pileup, the city’s fire department said. Another person died when their car rolled over in the Dallas-area city of Arlington, police said.

    The dangerous conditions are not over. A nasty combination of freezing rain, sleet and accumulating ice are expected hit parts of Texas, Arkansas and Tennessee through at least Thursday morning, forecasters said.

    “Road conditions will be AWFUL after sunset and overnight,” the National Weather Service in Fort Worth said. “DO NOT BE ON THE ROADS.”

    More than an inch of sleet has already piled up in parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Kentucky and Illinois since Monday.

    In Texas alone, more than 350,000 homes, businesses and other power customers had no electricity in the frigid cold Wednesday night, according to PowerOutage.US.

    Ice brought down multiple trees and large tree limbs Wednesday, causing power outages across the Austin metro area, the National Weather Service said.

    Dangerous conditions prompted Parkland Health system in Dallas to extend the closure of its clinics on Thursday.

    Here’s what’s on tap in the southern and central US:

    • Texas: The state has seen heavy freezing rain throughout Wednesday, which will continue steadily into overnight across much of northern and central Texas as temperatures remain below freezing.

    • Southern Oklahoma: Freezing rain continues to move across the region and will last through Thursday morning.

    • South-central Arkansas and Tennessee’s Memphis area: An additional tenth- to quarter-inch of ice could pile up through Thursday morning.

    • Across the region: Total ice accumulation of at least a quarter of an inch is likely from West Texas to western Tennessee through Thursday morning. Up to a half-inch could build up in parts of central and north-central Texas and southern Arkansas, the National Weather Service said.

    • Widespread flight cancellations: More than 2,400 flights within, into or out of the US were canceled Wednesday, according to the tracking website FlightAware.

    Jackknifed tractor-trailers blocked Interstate 10 in Reeves County, Texas, on Tuesday.

    In a state not accustomed to heavy ice, a group of Jeep enthusiasts used their vehicles to help stranded drivers.

    The Dallas-based “Carnales Off Road” group regularly supports those in need, founder Jorge Coronilla Muñiz told CNN.

    “It’s not the first time we’ve done this during bad weather. We try to help as often as possible,” Muñiz said.

    Several semi-trucks got stuck on Interstate 20 on Tuesday, and about 30 Jeeps helped tow them.

    “Before we got to I-20, we also helped a few other cars who were stuck on the streets,” Muniz said. “We eventually came across the standstill on Interstate 20 and helped an additional 20 trucks.”

    Muñiz said he and other group members helped stranded motorists from early Tuesday morning all the way until 10 p.m.

    “Everyone was very grateful for our help, especially the truck drivers. Some even asked if we were going to charge them for the help, but we told them we were just there to help.”

    The group is back out on the roads Wednesday and will help medical professionals having difficulty getting to and from work, Muñiz said.

    More than 12 million people across parts of southeastern Oklahoma, southern Missouri, central and eastern Arkansas, western Tennessee, northwestern Mississippi and Texas are under ice storm warnings Wednesday.

    The weather service issues ice storm warnings when ice accumulations of more than a quarter of an inch are possible.

    Unsafe travel conditions Tuesday led to hundreds of car crashes across Texas, officials said. Emergency workers responded to people suffering from hypothermia or those injured after slipping on ice. The Texas National Guard is prepared to help stranded motorists, clear roadways and provide welfare checks, Gov. Greg Abbott said. And Texas Parks and Wildlife has at least 30 responders ready for search and rescue operations.

    Meanwhile, a separate storm system will also send temperatures plunging across the Northeast.

    The National Weather Service predicts “dangerously cold temperatures” in the region Friday and Saturday, with freezing cold wind chills that can cause frostbite in just 10 minutes, it said.

    “Limit time outdoors and cover all skin if going out,” the service added.

    The service forecasts wind chills of -20 to -35 degrees Fahrenheit early Friday affecting parts of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, while Saturday morning could bring wind chills of -60 degrees Fahrenheit across northern New England, the weather service said.

    Leaders across states including Rhode Island, Connecticut and Maine were coordinating resources ahead of the extreme weather and setting up warming centers, according to messages from the governors.

    “Temperatures this weekend will be extremely – and dangerously – cold across the state,” Maine Gov. Janet Mills said in a Tuesday news release. “Please take extra precautions, be careful if you go outside, and be sure to check on your family, friends, and neighbors to make sure they are okay.”

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  • Thousands without power after reported tornadoes strike Texas and Louisiana communities as storm continues to threaten South, Midwest | CNN

    Thousands without power after reported tornadoes strike Texas and Louisiana communities as storm continues to threaten South, Midwest | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    More than a dozen reported tornadoes struck across communities in Texas and Louisiana, damaging many homes and businesses as windows and roofs were blown off buildings – and the threat is expected to persist Wednesday in other southern states.

    A massive, multi-day storm is bringing different impacts to a large swath of the US this week, with parts of Alabama, Florida and Mississippi under a tornado watch through 5 a.m. Wednesday while snow is also in store for the Midwest.

    “A winter storm will move into the Mid-Mississippi Valley by Wednesday morning. Areas of heavy snow and a wintry mix over Oklahoma and the Ozarks will expand northeastward into the Ohio Valley through early Wednesday,” the National Weather Service said on Twitter.

    On Tuesday, the storm inflicted extensive damage to the Houston-area communities of Deer Park and Pasadena, where downed trees and debris littered streets and thousands were without power after lines were knocked down.

    “We’ve seen plenty of damage. We’ve seen buildings that have collapsed,” Pasadena Mayor Jeff Wagner said.

    Josh Bruegger, the city’s police chief, described the damage as the worst he has seen in 25 years, adding, “For the coming days, we’re going to have our hands full.”

    In Deer Park, people who were at St. Hyacinth Catholic Church hunkered down in a hallway and closed all doors as they heard what they believe to be a tornado roll through the area, Father Reginald Samuels said.

    “It got really loud, we heard glass breaking, and the building was shaking then it was calm,” Samuels told CNN, adding that no one was hurt.

    Damage was also reported at a Deer Park nursing home, prompting the evacuation of about 60 residents Tuesday afternoon, Mayor Jerry Mouton told CNN. There were no reports of injuries, according to Jerry Dilliard with the Atascocita Fire Department. CNN reached out to the nursing home’s operator Tuesday for more information.

    Mr. Electric employees Héctor Vázquéz, left, and Lucas Perry pass off a phone outside their office building where they were working when a powerful storm system hit Tuesday in Deer Park, Texas.

    As clean-up efforts are underway in Deer Park, schools in the city will close Wednesday, the district said.

    “We hope this will give families a chance to recover from the stress of today’s events, and we believe it is best for children to be with their parents or guardians after a natural disaster,” the district said in a statement sent to parents and employees Tuesday night.

    “It appears many homes and businesses in our area were damaged, and some neighborhoods remain without power at this time,” the statement continued.

    Photos of damage in Deer Park show tree limbs lying on roads, roofs flown off buildings and damaged vehicles.

    John Liparito surveys storm damage Tuesday in Pasadena, Texas.

    More than 100,000 homes and businesses in Texas and Arkansas were left in the dark early Wednesday morning, according to the tracking site PowerOutage.us. As of 9 p.m. ET, at least 14 tornadoes had been reported across southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana.

    In Louisiana’s Beauregard Parish, the sheriff’s office reported significant damage to homes and other buildings, noting that roads were blocked and power lines were down. Nearly 16,000 homes and businesses were also without power in Louisiana early Wednesday morning.

    Overall, there were no reports of serious injuries associated with Tuesday’s storm damage, with Pasadena officials reporting one injury.

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  • Tens of thousands without power in Northeast as another storm threatens the US from New Mexico to Maine | CNN

    Tens of thousands without power in Northeast as another storm threatens the US from New Mexico to Maine | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Tens of thousands of homes and businesses across multiple states in the Northeast were without power early Tuesday after a winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow across areas from central New York to the Maine-Canada border.

    And while the region is expected to get a slight reprieve from heavy snow Tuesday, another storm system is forming in the southern region of the country that’s forecast to move into the Northeast later this week.

    “A large-scale winter storm will move into the southern Plains Monday night and Tuesday, producing areas of heavy snow from eastern New Mexico through Oklahoma,” the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center said on Twitter.

    “The storm is expected to strengthen and track northeastward from the lower Mississippi Valley to the Great Lakes Tuesday night and Wednesday, and produce a stripe of moderate to heavy snow from the Ozarks to the Great Lakes,” the agency added.

    On Tuesday, parts of New England, especially southern parts of Maine, may experience light snow, National Weather Service said on its website. Meanwhile, areas across the Northeast are expected to see cold, dry air and windy conditions.

    And those conditions are persisting as thousands across Massachusetts and New Hampshire are without power after wind and snow from the previous storm knocked down power lines.

    “York County, Maine, has been most impacted by today’s long duration storm as leftover snow on trees and power lines from (last) Friday’s storm resulted in downed trees and blocked roads throughout the area,” Central Maine Power spokesperson Jon Breed told CNN Monday.

    As of early Tuesday morning, more than 30,000 homes and businesses were in the dark in Maine’s south westernmost York County, according to the PowerOutage.us.

    Snow already packed on trees from recent storms along with strong winds are likely to exacerbate damage to the electric system and bring additional outages, New England’s largest energy provider Eversource said in a statement Monday on the status of power outages in New Hampshire.

    “Our system has continued to take damage into tonight, and we are actively assessing and clearing damage while also supporting public safety efforts,” Eversource spokesperson William Hinkle told CNN Monday night.

    Eversource is tapping into its regional resources, bringing in additional crews from its Connecticut and Massachusetts based operations to support restoration efforts in New Hampshire, where more than 66,0000 homes and businesses were also without power Tuesday morning, according to PowerOutage.us.

    About 17 inches have fallen across parts of Maine and New Hampshire while some areas in Vermont and New York saw about 14 inches of snow.

    The next storm is expected to impact the country for several days beginning Tuesday, when more than 15 million people are under the threat of severe storms. High wind alerts have also been issued for more 20 million people as gusts could reach as high as 55 mph.

    There is an enhanced risk of severe storms (level 3 of 5) from southeastern Texas to the western Florida Panhandle, including New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Mobile, Alabama. The main threats are damaging winds, large hail and several tornadoes, a few of which could be strong.

    A slight risk for severe storms (level 2 of 5) surrounds the enhanced risk area and includes Houston, Beaumont, Texas, and Lake Charles, Louisiana – which could also see tornadoes, damaging winds and isolated large hail.

    Meanwhile, there is also a marginal risk (level 1 of 5) for the middle Texas coast, across southern Louisiana into Alabama and the western Florida Panhandle, including Corpus Christi, Texas, and Jackson, Mississippi.

    On Wednesday, the severe storm threat will continue as it shifts to the east.

    A slight risk of severe storms has been issued for the region of southeastern Alabama and northern Florida and expands through Georgia and the Carolinas into Virginia and includes Jacksonville, Florida, north to Virginia Beach. That region is expected to see a few tornadoes and damaging winds.

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