‘Worst week of winter in your life’ – storm takes aim at Texas, New Mexico & South Central U.S.
DALLAS, Texas -- There's "no shortage of winter weather hazards" across the U.S. Sunday morning, with more than 150 million Americans under weather warnings, watches or advisories, according to the Weather Prediction Center.
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But there's one particularly ferocious winter storm that's taking aim at the South Central U.S., parts of which are still reeling from the deadly conditions a separate storm system created last week. And the worst part: it will be followed by another strong storm system that's likely to hit Tuesday.
"For long-time residents of southeastern Texas, southern Oklahoma, northern Louisiana and southern Arkansas, this will likely be the worst week of winter weather in your lifetime so far," CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam said.
The winter storm making its way into the region Sunday has put parts of southern Texas under winter storm watches for the "first time in a decade," the prediction center said.
Heavy snowfall is forecast in areas from New Mexico to the Mississippi Valley Sunday, the center said, while ice will glaze over the Texas coast to the Tennessee Valley into Monday.
"The swath of accumulating ice and snow on Monday is impressive, stretching from south Texas to the northern Mid-Atlantic," it added. "Heavy snow on Monday will also blanket much of the Lower Mississippi, the Ohio Valley, into the Northeast."
How much snow?
Parts of central Oklahoma could see up to 12 inches of snow by Tuesday -- with some areas possibly seeing more, according to the center. Areas from eastern Texas and the Ohio Valley all the way to the Northeast could meanwhile see up to eight inches. And up to half an inch of ice from the Lower Mississippi Valley to the Tennessee Valley could make for treacherous travel conditions, power outages and tree damage, the center added.
Travel may become impossible and possibly life threatening for stranded motorists," the National Weather Service (NWS) office in Dallas-Fort Worth warns.
As ice accumulates, another storm takes aim
Last week, at least nine people died in car crashes in the wake of winter storms that brought freezing rain and ice across the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas.
Now, parts of the region are expected to see the worst ice-related impacts Monday, while another storm will be gaining strength to begin only a day and a half later.
"With two crippling storms in five days, some people in remote areas will struggle to cope as temperatures remain below freezing and snow and ice remain on roadways," Van Dam said. "The cumulative potential economic impact for these regions cannot be overstated."
"Long duration, brutally cold temperatures in combination with significant ice and heavy snow will put a strain on the energy sector not experienced in years," he added.
Impacts from the second winter storm are likely to be felt through Thursday, while details on just how powerful it could be will become clearer in the coming days.
Ahead of the concerning weather conditions, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Saturday he would request a Federal Emergency Declaration from the White House to make resources available for the affected communities.
"Every part of the state will face freezing conditions over the coming days, and I urge all Texans to remain vigilant against the extremely harsh weather that is coming," the governor said in a statement. "Stay off the roads, take conscious steps to conserve energy, and avoid dangerous practices like bringing generators indoors or heating homes with ovens or stovetops."
140 temperature records could be shattered
And it won't just be freezing this week -- it will be so numbingly cold, that there will likely be more than 140 record-low temperatures shattered from Sunday morning through Tuesday morning, Van Dam said.
And more records could come by mid-week, he added.
More than 55 million people are already under wind chill alerts from North Dakota southward to Texas and from Indiana west to Montana, Van Dam said.
Wind chills will range from about -60 degrees Fahrenheit near the Canadian border to -20 degrees across central Texas, he added.
"This initial cold blast will last through Tuesday morning with another reinforcing shot of cold arctic air entrenching itself southward to the Gulf Coast by midweek," Van Dam said.
In Northwest, more snow coming
As the South Central U.S. is getting battered with cold weather, snow and ice, another storm will blanket parts of the Pacific Northwest and the Northern Rockies Sunday, Van Dam said.
Seattle already received more than a years' worth of snow from a storm that cleared out late Saturday.
The city saw about 8.9 inches of snow Saturday, marking a tie for the 12th snowiest day in more than 125 years of records, according to the National Weather Service in Seattle.
"The last time Seattle had more than 8.9 inches of snow in a day was January 27, 1969," the service wrote.
The storm moving in Sunday will likely drop about another one to two inches of snow before that transitions to rain in lower elevations.
Meanwhile up in the Cascades and the Northern Rockies, snow "will be measured in feet," Van Dam said.
What this means for Covid-19 vaccines
Officials in parts of the country that will be impacted by severe weather have said vaccinations will also be affected.
Federal officials expect Covid-19 vaccine shipments to Texas will be delayed over the next week because of weather conditions, Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief W. Nim Kidd said.
"Our vaccines that are set to arrive on Sunday, Monday will probably not arrive until Wednesday, Thursday, so we will see delays in vaccine coming into the state," Kidd said.
Some local outdoor vaccination sites have shut down ahead of the storm, the chief said.
"Indoor vaccination administration, as long as it is still safe to drive there, will continue," Kidd added.
Meanwhile in Oregon, the mass Covid-19 vaccination site at the Oregon Convention Center will be closed Sunday due to the weather conditions, according to a tweet from Kaiser Permanente NW.
Those who had appointments will be contacted to reschedule, another tweet said.
The weather service's Portland office said in a tweet Saturday that freezing rain in the northwestern parts of the state resulted in widespread power outages.
The Lone Star state
In Texas, record-breaking snowfall will be possible in some cities.
Confidence is growing for a significant snow event for the Red River Valley and surrounding areas this weekend.
The Dallas-Fort Worth area is expected to pick up 4 to 6 inches of snow through Monday. This would be the first February with more than a trace of snow since 2015.
If the city measures over a foot of snowfall in one day, that would approach record snowfall. In February 2010, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport had a record breaking 12.5 inches in just 24 hours.
That storm triggered widespread power outages, downed tree limbs and broken transmission lines. Clean up from the tree damage lasted weeks. These will all be concerns again with the upcoming storm, especially if they receive similar snowfall totals.
Gov. Greg Abbott (R) warned Texas that the demand for power could exceed supply in coming days, especially Monday and Tuesday.
"We ask that everyone start conserving energy," said Texas Public Utility Commission DeAnn Walker. "We have no additional generation we can add to the system."
Walker asked that residents conserve energy, including turning thermostat to 68, close shades or blinds, avoid using large appliances and unplug any equipment not in use.
"Regardless of how much snow is received, the bigger threat will be the extreme cold we are expecting on the heels of the system," the NWS Office in Dallas-Fort Worth says.
"Ongoing sub-freezing temperatures will plunge even further as another surge of arctic air arrives."
It has already been cold there, so depending on the wind direction and the amount of moisture present, a rare occurrence of lake-effect snow forming over some of the larger lakes in North Texas could be possible.
Other areas in Texas will also get hit with fresh powder including San Angelo, Amarillo and Lubbock. The forecast for the Lubbock area is around 4 to 8 inches. If Lubbock ends up receiving 8 inches that would crack its top 10 snowiest days.
The NWS Office in Amarillo is warning of major winter weather impacts including hazardous driving, power outages, reduced visibility and dangerous wind chills.
The forecast for this region is for 6 to 9 inches of snow.
Further east, Oklahoma City could see it largest snowfall in a decade, with a forecast of 8 to 10 inches.
Snowfall totals of 4 to 8 inches are expected from the Rockies through the southern Plains and into the Ohio River Valley through Monday.
Ice concerns in the South
South and east of all of this forecast snow is the risk for ice. Some cities that typically don't experience wintry weather will be dealing with a slippery mess.
The first round of freezing rain will be possible Sunday across northeastern Texas, into southern Arkansas and northwestern Louisiana.
Ice buildup totals should be light. But just a glaze of ice can cause treacherous conditions on roads.
As more moisture surges north from the Gulf of Mexico Sunday night and Monday, however, a more significant icing could be possible further south.
"This system will bring more significant widespread frozen [precipitation] accumulations ... perhaps as far south as the coast," says the NWS office in Houston.
Houston and other Texas cities such as San Antonio and Austin -- as well as Shreveport, Louisiana -- will be at risk for icing by Monday. But the exact details in the forecast are still unknown.
Freezing rain is often difficult to predict. The temperatures at the ground level and up in the atmosphere need to line up perfectly to produce this kind of precipitation.
The system will then continue to track north and east toward the East Coast of the U.S. by mid-week. This may introduce icing from Mississippi through the Ohio River Valley, impacting similar locations as earlier this week.
