Record winds, ice and snow will affect 250 million Americans

Record waves of frigid winds, ice and snow will arrive next week in large swaths of the central, eastern and southern states, with meteorologists warning that “more than 250 million” people will be affected.

Several rounds of Arctic air are heading toward states as far west as North Dakota and Texas and will reach New York and Florida, projections for the first full week of January at Accuweather:

“The magnitude and extent of Arctic air will accumulate during the first full week of January and persist through the middle of the month and at times affect more than 250 million people living in more than 40 regional states central and eastern. “, reported the media.

“Right now, it looks like there will be at least three major blasts of Arctic air that will affect the Southern states,” meteorologist Alex DaSilva said. “The first outbreak will persist until January 4, the second on January 7 and 8, then the third on January 11 and 12.”

More blasts of Arctic air “may follow” but are expected to hit the Midwest and Northeast more, noted Accuweather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowsk.

According to Paul Pastelok, the resource’s leading long-range expert, “this could become the coldest January since 2011 for the entire United States.”

An impressive 1,500-mile-long winter storm system is expected to cover large portions of the Midwest up to Virginia with snow and ice:

The National Weather Service (NWS) has predicted that bands of heavy snow from northeast Kansas to north-central Missouri will exceed 15 inches, making it the heaviest snowfall in a decade.

“Moderate to locally heavy snow is expected to reach the northern Mid-Atlantic region Sunday evening with a wintry mix extending from the central Appalachians to central/eastern Virginia,” the NWS said.