Winter Storm Brings Hazardous Travel, Dangerous Temperatures to Central US

A Wayne County Department of Public Services truck salts a road in Wayne, Mich., on Jan. 25, 2023. (Carlos Osorio/AP Photo)

The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued wind chill advisories and freeze warnings as a strong arctic cold front sweeps through the Great Plains and is set to bring a winter weather event to much of the country.

Freezing rain and sleet are forecast in the southern Plains and the Tennessee Valley starting Monday and continuing on and off through Wednesday, meteorologists said. More than 40 million people from Texas to West Virginia are under winter weather alerts, CNN reported.

The wintry weather could create hazardous travel conditions for several days, especially on untreated surfaces. The area of impact covers at least 15 states, with light amounts of ice and significant freezing rain forecast in central Texas, southwest Oklahoma, central Arkansas, and western Tennessee.

According to NWS, the ice accumulation could result in scattered tree damage, power outages, and sleet accumulations of up to half an inch in northern Texas and northern Arkansas.

The cold air responsible for the icy weather will also lead to below-average temperatures throughout the central and western United States.

Temperatures 20 to 30 degrees below average will result in single-digit highs from the central Plains to the upper Midwest, with lows starting below zero. Gusty winds will also create dangerous wind chills as low as 40 degress below zero in the Dakotas.

The cold air is forecast to warm up by midweek, but temperatures will remain below average across the majority of the nation outside the southeast.

Local Hazards

NWS Fort Knox in Kentucky wrote on Twitter that its winter storm warning would remain in effect until noon Wednesday.

“Dangerous travel conditions are expected during this time, with icy bridges/overpasses and surface streets,” the agency said.

By Wednesday, heavy rain and scattered flash floods are expected in eastern Texas due to an influx of moisture. This area is likely to contain saturated soils, making flooding more likely.

NWS Norman in Oklahoma issued a warning about travel conditions due to the onset of sleet and freezing rain. The agency said the adverse weather conditions were expected to begin Monday morning.