Eastern U.S. to Be Locked in Cold Until Start of February

Monday, January 27, 2014

Eastern U.S. to Be Locked in Cold Until Start of February

Arctic Weather Bears Down On U.S. Midwest, Northeast

Reuters | Posted: 01/04/2014 4:02 pm EST | Updated: 01/23/2014 8:17 am EST

By Victoria Cavaliere

NEW YORK, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Many parts of the U.S. Midwest braced for a blast of Arctic air this weekend that could bring some of the coldest temperatures in two decades before advancing to the Northeast, where residents are still digging out from a deadly snowstorm.

Starting Sunday, the deep freeze will be felt in the northern U.S. plains, including North and South Dakota, and through the Great Lakes region and Ohio Valley, according to the National Weather Service.

It will be some of the coldest weather to grip the region in two decades, with blizzard conditions expected in the Central Plains and Great Lakes regions, forecasters said.

"The last really big Arctic outbreak was 1994," said Bob Oravec, a forecaster with the National Weather Service. "Outbreaks like this don't occur every day."

In northeastern Canada, about 110,000 customers were without power due to a transformer fire on Saturday linked to heavy snow, government officials and Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro said.

The push of Arctic air could bring record low temperatures from Montana to Michigan, before moving the Northeast, where it will arrive by early Tuesday, forecasters said.

Temperatures in Chicago could drop to about minus 20 (minus 29 Celsius). Pittsburgh could see temperatures about 11 degrees below zero Fahrenheit (minus 24 Celsius) by early Tuesday.

Temperatures were forecast to fall to 30 below in parts of the north central United States early Sunday morning, and in Grand Forks, North Dakota, wind chills were expected to exceed 50 below. A high of 19 below is forecast for Sunday.

"You grin and bear it and bundle up," said Rachel Osowski, a clerk at Hugo's Supermarket in Grand Forks. "You have to survive and function, you can't let the weather stop you."

In such conditions, frostbite can set in on exposed skin within five minutes, forecasters warned.

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Eastern U.S. to Be Locked in Cold Until Start of February

By Brian K. Sullivan Jan 24, 2014 8:44 AM CT
Colder temperatures will grip the most of the eastern U.S. and Canada through the start of February, according to forecasters.
The region is expected to have readings about 8 degrees Fahrenheit (4 Celsius) below normal through Feb. 2, said Matt Rogers, president of Commodity Weather Group LLC in Bethesda, Maryland. Colder weather is forecast across the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley from today through Jan. 28, said Rogers and MDA Weather Services of Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Below-normal temperatures in the high population areas of the U.S. Northeast and Midwest boost energy demand as more people turn up their thermostats to heat homes and businesses. Natural gas is heading for its biggest weekly gain since September 2012 as frigid weather persists.