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A major winter storm will start hitting the U.S Southeast and travel up through New England on Wednesday with freezing rain, snow and strong winds, adding to record-shattering cold that is keeping its grip on much of the eastern United States.
Forecasters are expecting the storm to become a so-called "bomb cyclone" because its pressure is predicted to fall so fast, an indicator of explosive strengthening. The storm could rank as the most intense over the waters east of New England in decades at this time of year. While blizzard conditions could paste some coastal areas, the most extreme conditions will remain well out over the ocean.
[Almost 50 degrees. In Anchorage. In January. What's going on?]
The winter mix along with low wind chills could cause widespread power outages and ice over roadways, making commuting treacherous for millions of Americans from northern Florida to southern Virginia, the National Weather Service said in a series of warnings.
"Travel will be dangerous and nearly impossible, including during the morning commute on Wednesday," the service said in an advisory for northeastern Florida.
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Eastern Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia will get as much as 6 inches of snow along with an accumulation of ice while parts of New England could see 12 to 15 inches of snow and wind gusts of 35 mph by the end of week, the service said.
Late on Tuesday, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency for 28 counties after the National Weather Service issued the winter storm warning.
Animation of low-level wind speed showing the development of the massive circulation of Nor'easter "bomb" from Wed to Fri. The storm really kicks into gear off the Carolinas w/large area of very strong winds along southern flank of "eye-like" feature or low center. @weatherdotus pic.twitter.com/kfyn4KnTCm
— Ryan Maue | weather.us (@RyanMaue) January 2, 2018
Florida Gov. Rick Scott on Tuesday urged residents in the northern part of his Sunshine State to prepare for the cold. His office said cold weather shelters have opened or are planning to open in 22 of the state's 67 counties.
As the storm bears down, an arctic air mass will remain entrenched over the eastern two thirds of the country through the end of the week. The cold is to blame for at least eight deaths in Texas, Wisconsin, West Virginia, North Dakota and Michigan over the past several days.
A large swath of the Midwest was under a warning early Wednesday as places like Cleveland and Indianapolis had wind-chill temperatures of 5 to 20 degrees below zero while the deep South faced temperatures that threatened to damage crops and water pipes, the National Weather Service warned.
Material from the Washington Post is included in this article.