Powerful storm starts hitting an East Coast still buried under last week's snow
Blizzardlike conditions stemming from a "bomb cyclone" were bringing heavy snow to the Southeast and were ushering in frigid temperatures to much of the East Coast Saturday, as tens of thousands of homes and businesses remained without power after being hit by a different icy storm last week that was to blame for dozens of weather-related deaths.
The frigid cold plunged as far south as Florida. Some areas unaccustomed to snow were bracing for several inches to fall by Sunday.
Subfreezing weather was forecast into February, with heavy snow in the Carolinas, Virginia and northeast Georgia over the weekend, including up to a foot in parts of North Carolina. Snow was also said to be possible from Maryland to Maine.
Every single county in the Carolinas was under a winter storm warning through Sunday morning. More than 200 collisions were reported in North Carolina Saturday.
Temperatures were plummeting on Saturday, with a low of minus 27 degrees Fahrenheit recorded in West Virginia, said Bob Oravec, the lead meteorologist for the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland.
More than 174,000 homes and businesses, mostly in Mississippi and Tennessee, were without power Saturday night, according to utility tracker PowerOutage.us. Many of those are residents in the South who have been without power for days since last week's storm.
In Norfolk, Virginia, a Carnival cruise had to end its trip early due to the conditions, with passengers missing out on a stop to Turks and Caicos.
The snow was also causing major travel disruptions. More than 2,400 U.S. flights were canceled Saturday, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware.
In Tallahassee, Florida, light snow fell as the state faces its coldest temperatures in decades.
In Nashville, Tennessee, where temperatures were in the teens on Saturday, and more than 41,000 were still without power, frustrations bubbled. Terry Miles, 59, said his home has not had power since Sunday. He is using a fish fryer for heat, though he worries about the dangers of carbon monoxide.
"I'm taking a chance of killing myself and killing my wife, because — Why?" Miles said after attending a Nashville Electric Service news conference intended to showcase the utility's repairs on poles and lines. He then pointed to officials.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said he shared "strong concerns" with the leadership of Nashville Electric Service, adding that residents "need a clear timeline for power restoration, transparency on the number of linemen deployed, and a better understanding of when work will be completed in their neighborhood." The utility has defended its response, saying the storm that struck last weekend was unprecedented.
In the Northeast, it's the second week of a deep freeze. Officials suspect frigid temperatures caused communication cables to fall from elevated subway tracks onto parked cars Friday in New York City.
New York City crews have worked to melt more than 20 million pounds of snow, using what they are dubbing "hot tubs."
And in Washington, D.C., the National Guard has joined the effort to remove dangerous snow and ice from schools in the city. The National Guard has troops standing by in 15 states to help communities recover.
Heavy snow in the South
Parts of the southern Appalachians, the Carolinas and Georgia could see 6 to 10 inches of snow, Oravec said. The Carolinas could see blizzard conditions overnight stemming from a bomb cyclone, a term Oravec used to describe an intense, rapidly strengthening storm system off the Southeast coast packing strong winds.
"Anytime you have cold weather advisories or extreme cold warnings, it is dangerous to be outside. Frostbite can occur," Oravec said. "Especially in areas that have or are experiencing power issues still, prolonged exposure to cold weather is not good for yourself."
In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina — whose official seal is the sun, palm trees and a seagull — 6 inches of snow was expected. The city has no snow removal equipment, and authorities planned to "use what we can find," Mayor Mark Kruea said.
In Kannapolis, North Carolina, Interstate 85 North closed Saturday night after more than 100 vehicles, including over two dozen tractor trailers, were stuck on the interstate after a crash. The North Carolina National Guard, North Carolina DOT and the North Carolina State Highway Patrol were responding and assisting stranded motorists.
Grappling with freezing temperatures
At least 87 people have died from Texas to New Jersey, according to data collected by CBS News. Causes of death included hypothermia or exposure, carbon monoxide poisoning, and accidents like sledding crashes. Officials have not released specific details about some deaths.
Experts warned of the growing risks of hypothermia. Frostbite was also a concern in the South, where some people may lack sufficiently warm clothing, said Dr. David Nestler, an emergency medicine specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. Wind chills will plunge well below zero across much of the region, with values near -20 degrees Fahrenheit in parts of the Ohio Valley on Sunday morning.
In North Carolina, hundreds of National Guard soldiers readied to help and state workers worked to prepare roads.
The city of Wake Forest saw a steady stream of people filling propane tanks Friday at Holding Oil and Gas, including José Rosa, who arrived after striking out at three other places.
"I'm here in this cold weather, and I don't like it," Rosa said as he held a 20-pound tank.
In Dare County, home to much of North Carolina's Outer Banks, residents worried that more unoccupied houses in communities like Rodanthe and Buxton could collapse into the Atlantic Ocean.
The frigid cold is expected to plunge as far south as Florida. For parts of Southern Florida, it will be the coldest air seen in decades. Sunday and Monday are likely to set records.