A powerful winter storm is sweeping across the central United States, bringing heavy snow, ice, and dangerously low temperatures, the National Weather Service (NWS) reported Sunday. Winter storm warnings stretch from Kansas and Missouri to New Jersey, with blizzard conditions and widespread disruptions expected. In Kansas and northern Missouri, snow and sleet accumulations could reach up to 14 inches (35.6 cm), with high winds creating whiteout conditions. The NWS warned that travel could be "very difficult to impossible," urging residents to avoid unnecessary trips. The storm is set to move into the Ohio Valley before reaching the Mid-Atlantic states on Sunday and Monday, where a hard freeze is expected as far south as Florida. Severe thunderstorms, possible tornadoes, and hail are forecast ahead of the storm system's cold front in the Lower Mississippi Valley. In Kansas, icy conditions caused car wrecks, including a fire truck and several tractor-trailers overturning near Salina. Freezing rain in Wichita led to multiple crashes, prompting police to urge residents to stay home. Missouri's transportation department also reported numerous vehicles sliding off roads and warned of labor shortages impacting road-clearing efforts. Air travel faced significant disruptions, with the Kansas City International Airport temporarily halting operations due to ice. A charter jet carrying the Kansas City Chiefs was delayed before the runways reopened late Saturday. In Virginia, Maryland, and central Illinois, governors and local officials declared states of emergency, with authorities urging residents to prepare for extended travel disruptions and power outages. The polar vortex, which usually circulates around the North Pole, has stretched into the U.S., bringing temperatures 12 to 25 degrees (7 to 14 degrees Celsius) below normal across the eastern two-thirds of the country starting Monday. Temperatures dropped to minus 14 (-25 C) in International Falls, Minnesota, while Chicago and Minneapolis experienced lows in the teens and near zero Fahrenheit (-18 C). In Louisiana, efforts intensified to rescue a manatee spotted in Lake Pontchartrain before freezing conditions set in. Manatees, common in the summer, can suffer cold stress when temperatures drop below 68 degrees Fahrenheit (20 C). Stores in Kansas and Missouri saw residents stocking up on supplies, while warming centers opened in churches and libraries. Officials in Annapolis and Baltimore issued extreme weather alerts and opened emergency shelters as the storm approached. "This is the real deal," warned John Gordon, a meteorologist in Louisville, Kentucky. "Are the weather people blowing this out of proportion? No." As the storm moves eastward, snow accumulations of up to 12 inches (30 cm) are expected in parts of the Mid-Atlantic, with temperatures remaining below freezing throughout the weekend. — Agencies
