A person walks atop the frozen Capitol Reflecting Pool on the National Mall in Washington, DC, yesterday. Photo / Aaron Schwartz, AFP
Today the snow was blowing sideways outside the Outer Banks home that Dawn Hoskins shares with her husband, two young children and two dogs, a short walk from the Atlantic Ocean.
“It’s coming down in squalls,” said Hoskins, 39, as she looked outside her window in Rodanthe, North Carolina.
Storms are hardly a novelty on this sliver of United States barrier island along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. She was used to gusts that rattled the cedar shakes on the family’s cottage, and the howl of the wind at the windows and the creaking of the roof.
The gales had come in with a powerful nor’easter already delivering snow to the region, before it was expected to continue strengthening into the next day.
The winter storm was forecast to rapidly intensify into a dangerous bomb cyclone off the coast of North Carolina by tomorrow, bringing its most severe effects to the Carolinas and southern Mid-Atlantic, particularly in stretches of the coastline.
And with the extreme cold predicted to grip the region for days, Hoskins had a different worry.
One was the flooding from the ocean that often happened on the street just by their house. If the water rose again, she was worried it could freeze and leave her stranded.
Then there was the issue that had haunted millions of people across the Southeast over the past week.
“Our biggest concern is losing power,” Hoskins said, whose family doesn’t have a generator.
“Our house will get cold real quick … As long as we can stay warm, we are all right.”
Similar scenes - and similar sentiments - played out around parts of the Southeast and Eastern Seaboard today where both the beauty and brutality of winter were on full display.
From Florida to Georgia to the Carolinas, from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the beaches of southern Virginia, the latest storm had already brought a blanket of fresh powder to many communities.
For many in its path, it meant sledding, snowy vistas and a noticeable departure from the treacherous ice storm that had steamrolled much of the South only a week earlier, causing at least 69 deaths and leaving more than one million people without electricity at its peak.
The latest winter blast also brought its own set of perils. The storm cancelled hundreds of flights and made roads impassable, stranding travellers. Forecasters warned of blizzard conditions and deep, dangerous cold likely to linger for days.
That freeze will be deepen into the week - when 18 states and Washington DC may set daily low temperature records, including some records dating back more than a century.
In Wilmington, North Carolina, for example, a low temperature of -10.5C is forecast on Tuesday which could topple the current record of -8.3C set in 1980.
In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, a low of -8.8C on Tuesday could break a 1945 record of -6.6C.
“If you’re disappointed by how few snowflakes fell this past weekend, I have some good news for you,” North Carolina Governor Josh Stein (Democrat) had told residents ahead of the storm.
“And if you’re tired of winter weather, some bad news: This is going to be with us a little bit longer.”
By today as bone-chilling winds set in and snow was piling up from the North Carolina mountains to Charlotte and on to the coast, Stein underscored a plea that officials had made across numerous states, imploring people to stay put wherever possible.
“Stay home and off the roads, grab a sled, and enjoy the winter fun,” he said in statement.
He added that high winds could lead to coastal flooding and vowed that thousands of employees and contractors would work around-the-clock to plough and treat major roads.
The snow and cold extended as far south as Florida, with snow already reported as far south as Homosassa Springs, north of Tampa. The Sunshine State had begun to prepare ahead of the weekend, as the mercury fell into unfamiliar territory for many Floridians.
Walt Disney World closed down its water park. The Central Florida Zoo in Sanford wrote on social media that it would offer visitors a discounted rate “because some of our animals may choose to stay inside this weekend”.
“I think in southern Florida, you’re going to see iguanas falling from the trees,” Governor Ron DeSantis (Republican) said. “I mean, a lot of them.”
Iguanas become sluggish and “cold-stunned” when temperatures dip below 4C. The potential freeze also could kill off Burmese pythons, which are invasive and have been wreaking havoc on the Everglades, the governor said.
While the worst of the snow will spare Nashville, where nearly 50,000 customers remain without power, subzero wind chills are expected there. The Tennessee city was hit hard both by last weekend’s storm and the ensuing outages that have left thousands in limbo as they try to recover.
Even a week after the ice storm tore through the region, Toni Colgan can still hear the cracking of trees and branches buckling under the weight of ice every time she steps outside as the cold in Tennessee remains.
“It’s a whole new sound that I’ve never experienced,” said the operations lead for a corporate flower shop.
As another storm threatened and the bitter temperatures persist, residents are worried about the compounding risks. “We’re ready for it to be over with,” Colgan said.
The storm is expected to scrape the coastal Mid-Atlantic and southeast Massachusetts while en route to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland in Canada, where it will deliver significant snow into the week ahead.
In the southern Appalachians and Carolinas, where the storm’s heaviest snow is expected, more than 15cm was already accumulating in some areas.
“Rarely do we see a storm like this one where tropical-storm-force winds and snow hit our state at the same time,” North Carolina Transportation Secretary Daniel Johnson said, warning that even state crews might have to pause ploughing and salting operations amid high winds.
“These … winds could make it unsafe in some places for anyone to drive, which along with the major snowfall and cold conditions is one more reason to stay put.”
Some of the harshest weather was expected to lash North Carolina’s storm-weary Outer Banks, where moderate-to-significant coastal flooding was forecast.
Strong winds and moderate-to-heavy snow will make for blizzard conditions. The National Park Service had closed all visitor facilities along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
As the howling wind and blur of snow whistled outside Hoskins’ home, the streets of Rodanthe were eerily quiet. The usual parade of beach pedestrians were nowhere to be found.
“I feel like everybody is hunkering down right now,” Hoskins said.
Her family planned to do the same. They would pile onto the big sofa in the living room - parents, children, dogs, and huddle together as they watched the blizzard unfurl out their front window deep into the night.
“It’ll be the warmest place to be,” she said.
- Matthew Cappucci contributed to this report.
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