Another wave of winter weather is expected in parts of the United States in the coming days, including frigid winds in the Northern Plains and unusual snow and ice in the Gulf Coast region.
The cold weather forecast for Monday in Washington, D.C., led to the inauguration ceremony of President-elect Donald Trump being moved indoors to the Rotunda of the United States Capitol.
Much of the country, from the Rocky Mountains to the Northern Plains, will experience colder than normal temperatures starting on Sunday and throughout next week, including forecasted wind chills of up to -40 degrees Celsius (-40 degrees Fahrenheit) or colder in North Dakota and northern Minnesota, said National Weather Service meteorologist Marc Chenard.
In such extreme cold conditions, frostbite can develop on exposed skin in 10 minutes or less, so people should wear coats, hats, and gloves and minimize time outdoors, said Connor Smith, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Bismarck.
The cold air will moderate as it moves south and east, but the central and eastern United States will continue to be cold with highs in the -11 and -7 degrees Celsius (between 10 and 20 degrees Fahrenheit) on Monday and Tuesday, Chenard stated. The Mid-Atlantic and Northeast will also have highs in the -11 and -7 degrees Celsius (between 10 and 20 degrees Fahrenheit), single-digit lows, and below -18 degrees Celsius (zero degrees Fahrenheit) wind chills.
"Chenard said, 'The cold weather will affect a large part of the country, especially the Rocky Mountains and points to the east.'"
An unusual winter weather of snow, sleet, and freezing rain is threatening Texas up to North Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina. The impacts are expected to begin in Texas on Monday night and spread across the Gulf Coast and the Southeast on Tuesday and Wednesday.
“It will be another relatively fast storm but it will likely produce some winter weather impacts in areas that don’t see it as often,” Chenard said.