200,000 Lose Power as Arctic Cold Front Slams South, Midwest
BUNDLE UP
Households across the mid-southern and midwestern United States were left without power on Thursday amid a brutal winter storm sweeping east across the country. Major outages were reported in Tennessee, Texas, and Arkansas, according to The Washington Post, which cited ice accumulation as the primary culprit. Roughly 115,000 households in Tennessee alone were without electricity on Thursday, PowerOutage.us reported, adding that 25,000 in Arkansas had been affected. Another 70,000 outages were also reported in Texas, after state Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said “no one can guarantee” that the storm wouldn’t cause blackouts. Also overwhelmed by the advancing cold front were roads and runways, made hazardous by snow and ice, as well as downed power lines and tree branches. Kentucky officials warned would-be motorists of “impossible” travel conditions, advising them not to venture out in their vehicles. More than 5,500 flights, many of them in Texas, were canceled on Thursday. Heavy snowfall, freezing rain, and ice buildup is expected across a 2,000-mile stretch of the country well into Friday, according to weather advisories and warnings.