Death Toll Mounts as Winter Storms Bring Chaos Across Eastern North America
A week of unrelenting cold weather has claimed at least 49 lives across the eastern United States, with millions forced to stay indoors and over a million left without power. The storm system, which stretched from New Mexico to New England, spanned an astonishing 2,000 miles and left a trail of destruction in its wake.
As the winter storm intensified, nearly 213 million people were under some form of warning, with millions more urged to stay at home. The hardest hit regions, including Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, were beset by crippling outages, leaving hundreds of thousands without electricity. On Wednesday night, a staggering 312,000 households remained in the dark.
The storm's impact extended far beyond the United States, however. Eastern Canada was also severely affected, with Toronto's Pearson airport setting a record for the most snow to fall in one day at that location – an astonishing 46cm (18.1in). Downtown Toronto fared even worse, with a staggering 56cm of snow recorded on Sunday.
Winter storm watches and warnings have been issued for parts of the mid-Atlantic region, where heavy snow is expected to bring accumulations of up to 10-20cm between Friday afternoon and Sunday afternoon. The worst-hit areas include North Carolina, east Tennessee, upstate South Carolina, Virginia, and north-east Georgia.
Meanwhile, a storm system in central Portugal, known as Storm Kirstin, has left over 3,000 weather-related incidents and five deaths in its wake. The storm brought heavy rain and strong winds, prompting emergency services to issue red weather warnings for ten coastal areas. Wave heights of up to 14 metres were recorded, putting the lives of thousands at risk.
As the winter storm season shows no signs of abating, residents across North America can only hope that the coming days will bring relief from the torrential snow and freezing temperatures that have gripped the continent.
A week of unrelenting cold weather has claimed at least 49 lives across the eastern United States, with millions forced to stay indoors and over a million left without power. The storm system, which stretched from New Mexico to New England, spanned an astonishing 2,000 miles and left a trail of destruction in its wake.
As the winter storm intensified, nearly 213 million people were under some form of warning, with millions more urged to stay at home. The hardest hit regions, including Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, were beset by crippling outages, leaving hundreds of thousands without electricity. On Wednesday night, a staggering 312,000 households remained in the dark.
The storm's impact extended far beyond the United States, however. Eastern Canada was also severely affected, with Toronto's Pearson airport setting a record for the most snow to fall in one day at that location – an astonishing 46cm (18.1in). Downtown Toronto fared even worse, with a staggering 56cm of snow recorded on Sunday.
Winter storm watches and warnings have been issued for parts of the mid-Atlantic region, where heavy snow is expected to bring accumulations of up to 10-20cm between Friday afternoon and Sunday afternoon. The worst-hit areas include North Carolina, east Tennessee, upstate South Carolina, Virginia, and north-east Georgia.
Meanwhile, a storm system in central Portugal, known as Storm Kirstin, has left over 3,000 weather-related incidents and five deaths in its wake. The storm brought heavy rain and strong winds, prompting emergency services to issue red weather warnings for ten coastal areas. Wave heights of up to 14 metres were recorded, putting the lives of thousands at risk.
As the winter storm season shows no signs of abating, residents across North America can only hope that the coming days will bring relief from the torrential snow and freezing temperatures that have gripped the continent.
. Like, who needs that kind of stress in their life? And can we talk about how ridiculous 312k households without power is? That's just...wow. I mean, I guess it's nice that everyone gets to experience the thrill of being snowed in for an entire week 
. Just what I always wanted – a reason to cancel all my plans and binge-watch Netflix until the end of time 
.
this is getting crazy!! like seriously 49 lives lost already? and millions without power? that's just heartbreaking 
especially with all the ppl stuck at home, no internet, no phone signal... it's like being cut off from the world 
and what's up with central portugal? 3000 weather incidents? that's insane 
at least they have emergency services there to help, but still... can't we just get some warm & cozy weather for once? 
The whole system is just so broken... but hey, at least the snow looks pretty in Toronto 
!
. i hope everyone stays safe & warm till this storm passes 
. also, 312k households without electricity? that's crazy! 
. I mean, they're talking about helping people stay warm and safe during the storm, but where was all that support when the wildfires were raging last year or when Hurricane Harvey hit Texas? 
It seems like only now that millions are stuck indoors without power do we hear about "community outreach programs" and whatnot. 
Let's be real, folks, some people have been saying for years that our emergency services infrastructure is woefully inadequate for extreme weather events. We need to hold our leaders accountable for not investing in the necessary resources to prepare for these kinds of disasters. 
49 deaths is like whoa thats a lot of people losing their lives just cuz of a freak winter storm dont get me wrong were all lucky to be alive but still can you believe how bad it was in texas lol theyre like snowed in and outaged everyone 
. the fact that 49 people have lost their lives is just heartbreaking 
. the economic impact of this storm will be huge too, especially for small businesses and communities that are already struggling 
. can't we just get some decent weather for once? 
this is why I'm so grateful for things like warmth and shelter 
. 49 lives lost is still way too many though, my heart goes out to all those affected 
. And 312k households without power? That's just ridiculous! Everyone should be prepared for extreme weather events by now... I'm just saying, it's not like we haven't been warned before 
.