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‘Once-in-a-generation’ snowpocalypse ravages the US with at least 5 dead and over 9K flights canceled

A treacherous winter storm impacts the US with thousands of power outages, and high winds calling for a state of emergency

WASHINGTON, DC: US braces for its once-in-a-generation storm that is set to impact nearly every state this Christmas. From treacherous winter conditions to thousands of power outages with at least six governors calling for a state of emergency. Around 5 people have been reported dead due to car crashes in Oklahoma with over 5000 residents without power in the region. Families visiting their loved ones during the busiest travel day of the year could be facing another nightmare with 9000 flights being delayed or canceled. Chicago and Denver airports will be the most affected by travel chaos.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency followed by five other states, Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, Georgia, and North Carolina. Chicago and Illinois are under a winter storm warning until 6 am Saturday, December 24. Weather advisories in the Northern Plains to the mid-South, with Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis-St Paul, Nashville, and Memphis have advised residents in those areas to avoid travel due to frigid conditions that will make it "difficult or impossible," to travel. On Friday, the storm is expected to reach its peak in the Great Lakes from Northern Wisconsin to Western New York, reported Daily Mail.

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President Joe Biden issued a warning about the incoming snowstorm asserting, "Take this storm extremely seriously," on Thursday, December 22. "This is not like a snow day when you were a kid. This is serious stuff, I encourage everyone, everyone, please heed the local warnings. Take this storm extremely seriously," Biden said. The five deaths recorded in Oklahoma were caused by separate motor vehicle accidents as the heavy snow damaged the roads.

Lieutenant Candice Breshears, of the Kansas Highway Patrol, said three people were killed in multiple crashes overnight due to the brutal storm, in a press conference on Thursday, December 22. A 16-year-old, Sawyer Lysell-Alkire, was traveling south on Interstate 135 in Saline County shortly when the vehicle veered off the highway and overturned into a ditch, reported Daily Mail. In another incident, Grant L Lysell-Alkire, 21, of Lindsborg, was pronounced dead at the scene. The Oklahoma Highway Patrol responded to two fatal crashes, one on the Turner Turnpike near Luther and a three-vehicle crash that occurred in Paden in central Oklahoma on Thursday.

Wide power outages have been reported with Texas leading with over 39,000 customers without power. Arkansas surpassed 6,500 customers without power and 5000 in Kansas. Counties most affected in the state include Upshur, Wood, Madison, and Ellis, according to PowerOutage.us. Northeastern Illinois could face three to six inches of snow, which could also reach up to one inch per hour. Wyoming could face frigid weather conditions with temperatures dropping 40 degrees in just half an hour.

Classified as a 'bomb cyclone' brings blizzard conditions for parts of the Northern Plains, Upper Midwest, and the Great Lakes - with Buffalo, Des Moines, and Grand Rapids. Erie, Pennsylvania, could get up to 18 inches of snow, while Buffalo can expect 12 inches. Cleveland will receive up to five inches of snow, while Boston and DC are getting one to five inches of rain. Bitter cold conditions in the Northeast would turn the rain into ice. Georgia and the Carolinas could face high winds throughout Friday.