Over 3,600 flights within the US are set to be cancelled tomorrow as the country deals with snow, fleet and freezing rain from a powerful winter storm that has closed schools and led multiple governors to declare a state of emergency.
On Wednesday, there were nearly 3,500 delays and 2,365 cancellations across the country, with airports in the Midwest being hit particularly hard, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.
‘A large, prolonged and significant winter storm will continue to impact much of the central US and move into the Northeast overnight, bringing a variety of winter weather hazards including heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain,’ the National Weather Service said Wednesday night.
The governors of Kentucky and Missouri have declared a state of emergency, while Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued a disaster declaration. On Wednesday, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul directed state agencies to prepare emergency plans before the storm hits the state on Thursday.
The storm is expected to continue affecting air travel through the week.
Already, 3,624 flights scheduled for Thursday have been cancelled, while 363 flights set for Friday have also been axed.
A powerful winter storm that has ripped through parts of the South, the Midwest and the Northeast has led to thousands of flight cancellations so far. Above, lifelong Flint, Michigan resident Cory Pacheco, 58, uses a snowblower to clear out his driveway on Wednesday
On Wednesday, there were 3,324 delays and 2,351 cancellations across the country
Airports in the Midwest and South were hit the hardest. At St. Louis Lambert International, 78 percent of flights were cancelled Wednesday. At Chicago O’Hare, 37 percent were cancelled
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has declared a state of emergency. Above, a pickup truck that slid into the median is towed out on Wednesday
A man clears snow from his car on Wednesday in Chicago
The airports that have been affected the most are all within the winter storm’s path, mostly in the Midwest and parts of the South.
At St. Louis Lambert International, 78 percent of flights were cancelled Wednesday. At Chicago O’Hare, 37 percent were cancelled.
In Springfield, Missouri, 35 percent of flights were cancelled. Thirty percent were axed in Kansas City, Missouri.
The blast of frigid weather, which began arriving Tuesday night, put a long stretch of states from New Mexico and Colorado to Maine under winter storm warnings and watches.
On Wednesday morning, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan saw freezing rain, sleet and snow.
The snow affected residents as far south as Texas, where multiple school districts in the Dallas-Fort Worth area announced they were cancelling classes Thursday and Friday, according to the Dallas Morning News. Schools in central Texas, including Austin, also announced closures, according to KXAN.
On Tuesday, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt tweeted that the state’s Department of Transportation ‘has more than 500 trucks statewide to respond to the storm and 123,000 tons of salt and sand.’
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson declared a state of emergency, with more than half the state under a winter storm warning.
By midday Wednesday, some places had already reported snow totals exceeding or nearing a foot, including the central Illinois town of Lewistown with 14.4 inches and the northeastern Missouri city of Hannibal with 11.5 inches.
About a third of Americans are under a winter watch, warning or advisory, according to the National Weather Service.
The National Weather Service says the ‘large, prolonged and significant’ winter storm will move into the Northeast overnight Wednesday after pummeling the Midwest and the South
Huge swaths of the country were under warnings, advisories and watches on Tuesday. About a third of Americans are affected
Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois issued a disaster declaration for his state on Tuesday afternoon
Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York has directed state agencies to prepare emergency plans before the storm hits the state on Thursday
‘While heavy snow is expected from the Rockies to New England, significant ice accretions will be likely on the storm’s southern edge from TX to central PA,’ the NWS said Tuesday.
In Colorado, residents woke up to heavy snowfall Wednesday, with 11 inches in communities around Denver and 22 inches in the Colorado Springs area, the weather service said.
On Wednesday, Eleanor Kasper and her 5-year-old son, Eli, took the snow day as an opportunity to sled down a hill in Middle Shooks Run Park in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Multiple schools closed down due to weather in the Colorado Springs area.
Parts of Missouri, Illinois and Ohio could receive 12 to 18 inches of snow through Thursday, the National Weather Service said, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Central Illinois and northern Indiana appeared likely to receive the most snowfall, with expected totals ranging from 12 to 18 inches by the end of Thursday, said Andrew Orrison, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland.
In Chicago, Elisha Waldman and his sons welcomed the opportunity to hit a sledding hill Wednesday morning, even as snow continued to fall.
‘Cold and wet and wonderful, and getting cold and wet is part of the fun with the guys, and we get to go inside and have hot cocoa and warm up,’ Waldman said.
Gov. Pritzker of Illinois issued a disaster declaration Tuesday afternoon.
A car buried under several inches of snow at the Margaret B. Upton Arboretum in St. Joseph, Michigan on Wednesday
Eleanor Kasper and her 5-year-old son, Eli, sled on a hill in Middle Shooks Run Park in Colorado Springs, Colorado on Wednesday after a winter storm closed schools in the area
A sign tells that the school has been canceled due to impending winter weather in Dallas, Texas on Wednesday
About 130 members of the Illinois National Guard were activated to combat heavy snow, ice and ‘blizzard conditions’ over the next few days, according WMAQ.
‘I’m authorizing a disaster proclamation for Winter Storm Landon, effective immediately, to support local government disaster response and recovery operations wherever necessary. I want to assure county and local officials and everyone in the path of the storm that my administration will provide resources every step of the way,’ Pritzker said.
‘On the ground, all state assets stand ready to assist. I encourage everyone to do what you can to stay safe: listen to local authorities to stay up to date with the latest conditions in your community and make sure your household has essentials.’
Men play football on a soccer field in Lincoln Park in Chicago, where 38 percent of flights from Chicago were grounded Wednesday
Matt Seggerman getss an early start on removing snow from his driveway in St. Charles County, Missouri on Wednesday
The Illinois Department of Transportation will send out more than 1,800 trucks and equipment to plow and treat roads and to respond to weather-related emergencies, officials said.
In Detroit’s western suburbs, Tony Haley also found an advantage to the weather. He owns a landscaping and irrigation company that offers snow removal and salting services, but the early winter weeks offered few opportunities for business.
‘This one here, we’re looking for a good two, three days of work,’ Haley said after clearing snow away from several businesses in Canton.
But for those on the roads, the heavy snow created hazardous conditions.
‘We’re receiving a lot of snow over here in northwest Indiana and it’s the wet, slushy snow that causes treacherous driving conditions to say the least,’ Indiana State Police Sgt. Glen Fifield told WFLD-TV.
A snow plow drives along West Michigan Avenue in downtown Kalamazoo, Michigan Wednesday
John Tapko clears snow at his house on Wednesday in Overland Park, Kansas
A woman walks down a snow-covered street on Wednesday in Kansas City, Missouri
In central Missouri, officials shut down part of Interstate 70 midday after a crash made the roadway impassable.
Areas south of the heavy snow were expected to see freezing rain, with the heaviest ice predicted along the lower Ohio Valley area from Louisville, Kentucky, to Memphis, Tennessee.
‘If everything holds to where it is right now, this is the real deal,’ said Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who ordered state government offices to close on Thursday. ‘It is dangerous. People need to be prepared.
‘A damaging ice storm is likely from eastern Arkansas northeastward to western Kentucky,’ the National Weather Service said Wednesday.
‘This will likely result in power outages, tree damage, and dangerous travel conditions. A broader corridor of heavy ice accumulations is likely from Texas through the Ohio River Valley.’
The disruptive storm moved across the central US on Groundhog Day, the same day the famed groundhog Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter. The storm came on the heels of a nor’easter last weekend that brought blizzard conditions to many parts of the East Coast.