PORTLAND: Millions of Americans faced deadly cold due to subfreezing temperatures throughout much of the country. Arctic storms caused tens of thousands of people in the Northwest to lose power, brought snow to the South, and battered the Northeast with blizzard conditions that forced the postponement of an NFL game. Four people died as a result of these storms.
On Sunday, wind chills below zero Fahrenheit (minus 17 Celsius) caused weather warnings or advisories for an estimated 95 million people countrywide. Forecasters said the severe cold was anticipated to travel as far south as northern Texas while the bitter blast sends wind chill values as low as minus 70 degrees (minus 56 Celsius) in Montana and the Dakotas.
The South Dakota Department of Public Safety warned people to stay inside, saying in a statement on Sunday that “it takes a matter of minutes for frostbite to set in.”
Because of the extreme weather, officials in Buffalo, New York, decided to postpone the Sunday NFL playoff game between the Buffalo Bills and Pittsburgh Steelers to Monday. A total of one to two feet (30 to 60 centimeters) of snowfall was predicted. Snow was falling at a pace of two inches (five cm) per hour, while winds gusted to thirty miles per hour (48 kph).
The Bills cautioned volunteers anxious to assist with the shoveling to stay at home and not disobey a travel ban on nearby roads as workers with shovels and trucks worked to clear snow from the field at Buffalo’s Highmark Stadium.
