A person is roofed in snow on Fenn Street in Pittsfield, Mass., Friday, Dec. 16, 2022. (Ben Garver/The Berkshire Eagle by way of AP)

Ben Garver/AP

cover caption

toggle caption

Ben Garver/AP

A person is roofed in snow on Fenn Street in Pittsfield, Mass., Friday, Dec. 16, 2022. (Ben Garver/The Berkshire Eagle by way of AP)

Ben Garver/AP

ATLANTA — Forecasters are warning of treacherous vacation journey and life-threatening chilly for a lot of the nation as an arctic air mass blows into the already-frigid southern United States.

“We’re looking at much-below normal temperatures, potentially record-low temperatures leading up to the Christmas holiday,” stated Zack Taylor, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

The polar air arrives as an earlier storm system regularly winds down within the northeastern U.S. after burying elements of the area beneath two toes (61 centimeters) of snow. More than 80,000 clients in New England had been nonetheless with out energy on Sunday morning, in keeping with poweroutage.us, which tracks outages throughout the nation.

The incoming arctic entrance brings “extreme and prolonged freezing conditions for southern Mississippi and southeast Louisiana,” the National Weather Service in a special weather statement Sunday.

By Thursday night time, temperatures will plunge as little as 13 levels (minus 10.6 Celsius) in Jackson, Mississippi; and round 5 levels (minus 15 Celsius) in Nashville, Tennessee, the National Weather Service predicts.

For a lot of the U.S., the winter climate will worsen earlier than it will get higher.

The coming week has the potential for “the coldest air of the season” because the robust arctic entrance marches throughout the jap two-thirds of the nation within the days earlier than Christmas, in keeping with the newest forecasts from the federal Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland.

The heart warned of a “massive expanse of frigid temperatures from the Northern Rockies/Northern Plains to the Midwest through the middle of the week, and then reaching the Gulf Coast and much of the Eastern U.S. by Friday and into the weekend.”

The arctic air was already pouring into Montana Sunday night time, however that wasn’t deterring residents from ice fishing and looking coyotes.

Ice fishing will proceed via the chilly blast, because the temperatures will not scare away anglers there — “not the hard-core ones anyway,” stated Jason Mundel, who runs the Ripp’n Lipps Guide Service in northeastern Montana.

Mundel stated it was 4 levels (minus 15.6 Celsius) there Sunday night time, and a coyote contest was nonetheless happening in a close-by group. “Those guys are just out in the elements, just bundled up,” he stated.

In Atlanta, the place temperatures are set to drop under freezing early Monday morning, forecasters warn of even colder air by late within the week, in keeping with the National Weather Service workplace in Peachtree City, Georgia. The low Friday night time in Atlanta can be round 13 levels (minus 10.6 Celsius) with the excessive temperature Saturday nonetheless under the freezing mark at round 29 levels (minus 1.7 Celsius), the Weather Service tasks.

Freezing temperatures can take lives immediately — a heartbreaking actuality that Atlanta homeless advocate George Chidi is aware of firsthand.

He went to verify on a lady with extreme psychological well being points in downtown Atlanta earlier this 12 months, and located she had died of suspected hypothermia simply hours earlier. Her physique was discovered outdoors the Greyhound bus station, which is open 24 hours within the coronary heart of downtown Atlanta, he stated.

“She died within 100 feet of three heated buildings,” Chidi stated.

He stated folks with out housing who die in freezing climate typically accomplish that as a result of they’re battling alcohol, medicine or extreme psychological sickness, or they don’t belief others and discover themselves on the streets somewhat than a shelter with different folks.

Homeless folks in southern states are additionally weak to its climate patterns that make it snug one week, however out of the blue freezing the following.

“A main factor isn’t the temperature itself,” Chidi stated. “It’s the speed with which the temperature drops.”

Florida won’t have a white Christmas, however forecasters predict that weekend to be unusually chilly all through the state.

Northern Florida cities reminiscent of Jacksonville, Tallahassee and Pensacola have predicted lows within the 20s (minus 3 Celsius) on Christmas Eve, with highs of about 40 (4 Celsius).

In the Northeast, utility corporations introduced in additional employees from different states however had been hampered by slick roads and harmful circumstances.

“This was a heavy, wet snow so that had impacts on both travel and the infrastructure,” stated Frank Pereira, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

Police throughout New England responded to tons of of crashes or autos sliding off the street this weekend. Maine State Police stated Saturday night time that they had responded to greater than 180 crashes since Friday night. There had been solely minor accidents.

Vermont officers stated they’re discovering areas for potential warming facilities within the hardest-hit areas, in case they’re wanted. State officers warned Saturday that some clients’ energy will not be restored for 2 to 3 days.

“Last night we had some people come in who weren’t able to cook for themselves, and so we definitely made sure that we had room for them,” Becket Gourlay, a number on the Waterhouse Restaurant in Peterborough, New Hampshire, stated on Sunday. “Even as we speak we had some individuals who got here in to look at the ultimate match for the World Cup as a result of their TVs had been out.”