U.S. Winter Storm Compels 9,000 Flight Cancellations

More than 9,000 flights across the US scheduled to depart over the weekend were canceled as a major winter storm threatened to wreak havoc across much of the country, potentially knocking out power for days and snarling major roadways, Emilie Megnien, Jeff Amy, and Jamie Stengle reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Forecasters said damage, particularly in areas hit by ice, could rival that of a hurricane. (Photo: IllinoisUser, Wikimedia Commons)

Roughly 140 million people were under winter storm warnings from New Mexico to New England. The National Weather Service (NWS) forecast warned of widespread heavy snow and a band of catastrophic ice stretching from east Texas to North Carolina.

Forecasters said damage, particularly in areas hit by ice, could rival that of a hurricane.

Ice and sleet that struck northern Texas overnight were moving toward the central part of the state on Saturday, the NWS office in Fort Worth said.

“Dangerously cold temperatures and wind chills are spreading into the area and will remain in place into Monday,” the agency said on X.

Low temperatures were expected to remain mostly in the single digits for the next few nights, with wind chills as low as minus 12 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 24 Celsius).

About 68,000 power outages were reported nationwide as of 8 a.m. ET, including roughly 27,600 in Texas. Snow and sleet continued to fall in Oklahoma.