A massive winter storm system packing cold air, snow and freezing rain hit the central United States on Sunday and headed for the East Coast, sending temperatures plummeting and causing major delays for weekend travel.
Rainfall and snow associated with the system will stretch over 1,500 miles (2,400 km), from southeastern Colorado to southern Massachusetts, meteorologists said.
More than 1,500 flights were cancelled and another 2,880 were delayed as of mid-afternoon on Sunday, according to flight tracker FlightAware.
"Ripple-effect flight delays and cancellations are likely to reach nationwide," said AccuWeather meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.
The storm "is going to be a real mess," said Bruce Sullivan, a senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
"The main system is injecting a lot of moisture and cold air out over the Southern Plains," he said. "It's going to bring quite a bit of precipitation."
Heavy snow could fall on an area from eastern Kansas to Pennsylvania, with the Mid-Atlantic, including parts of Maryland and Washington DC, getting up to 12 inches (30 cm) before the system dissipates on Monday.
SNOW EMERGENCY
Boston and New York City should see only light snowfall, but lingering freezing rain could complicate Monday morning's rush hour for commuters.
By Sunday afternoon, up to nine inches (23 cm) of snow had already fallen on parts of Indiana.
Central Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky were also at risk for heavy ice conditions and power outages, according to AccuWeather.
Though temperatures will not be as frigid as during some other storm systems this winter, when the so-called polar vortex pushed Arctic air across large swaths of the county, the cold air will blanket areas as far south as Texas and North Carolina.
Temperatures in the city of Lubbock, Texas, in the northwestern part of the state, were around 80F (26C) on Saturday but by Sunday morning were a bone-chilling 18F (minus 7C), NWS's Sullivan said.
Forecasters urged motorists to use caution as slick roads and fast-moving bands of snow can lead to traffic accidents.
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