US reels under snowstorm, more than 1 million customers without power: over 17000 flights cancelled

WASHINGTON: Heavy snowstorm has brought the US to a standstill, with over 190 million people under winter weather warnings and more than one million customers without power, across the mid-Atlantic and South. The storm has caused at least seven deaths, including hypothermia cases in Louisiana and Texas, and exposure-related deaths in New York City, reported CNN.

According to CNN, the frigid cold will linger into the week, and the outages could last for days in places including Nashville and Mississippi. It further noted that Sunday was the worst day for flight cancellations since the pandemic, as over 17,000 flights were cancelled during the storm.

Times Square in New York City during Sunday’s snowstorm #newyork #newyorkcity #nyc #timessquare @timessquarenyc pic.twitter.com/7VgOfLRyNc

— Gary Hershorn (@GaryHershorn) January 25, 2026

Heavy snow and sleet fell in the populous Interstate 95 corridor, with cities, including Boston, expecting their heaviest snow in years. As per the National Weather Service Aviation Weather Center, delays in aviation could continue to Monday (local time).

Expect snow, freezing rain/mixed precip, turbulence and icing below FL150, to continue to create aviation impact and delays into Monday morning. #aviation pic.twitter.com/7XJbQ4Vx3h

— NWS AWC (@NWSAWC) January 26, 2026

Earlier, the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center cautioned of catastrophic ice impacts lingering farther south with prolonged power outages.

Heavy snow will continue to spread across the Northeast this evening and overnight, with rapid accumulations (1–2”/hr) producing totals around 2 feet in parts of the region. Catastrophic ice impacts linger farther south with prolonged power outages. pic.twitter.com/DZa6tCe41q

— NWS Weather Prediction Center (@NWSWPC) January 25, 2026

In the wake of the winter storm, the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) shared that Trump has approved emergency declarations for 12 states covering nearly 900 counties and parishes and 4 tribal nations.

@DHSgov & our partners have been in lockstep with us since well before this winter storm started. This is a swift & unprecedented response. @POTUS approved a historic amount of emergency declarations for 12 states covering nearly 900 counties & parishes & 4 Tribal Nations. pic.twitter.com/zifQE7xUtL

— FEMA (@fema) January 26, 2026

Secretary Kristi Noem said in a post on X that the Trump administration has worked around the clock with state and local governments ahead of this winter storm. “Response to this storm has been locally executed, state-led and federally supported”, she said.

Earlier, the National Weather Service said that the winter storm would sweep across the eastern two-thirds of the US over the weekend. Noting that sub-zero lows will spread from northern and central plains into the northeast through Sunday, NWS said that sub-freezing temperatures are expected each night as far south as the Gulf Coast.

It said that extremely cold temperatures would expand across the eastern two-thirds of the US, with very cold weather continuing through the next week, and advised preparing for the “life-threatening cold,” as wind chills and prolonged cold could pose a risk of hypothermia and frostbite. (ANI)