Washington DC (US)

Heavy snowstorm has brought the US to a standstill, with over 190 million people under winter weather warnings and more than 1 million customers without power, across the mid-Atlantic and South. The storm has caused at least 7 deaths, including hypothermia cases in Louisiana and Texas, and exposure-related deaths in New York City, reported CNN.

According to CNN, the frigid cold will linger into the week, and the outages could last for days in places including Nashville and Mississippi.

It further noted that Sunday was the worst day for flight cancellations since the pandemic, as over 17,000 flights were cancelled during the storm.

Heavy snow and sleet fell in the populous Interstate 95 corridor, with cities, including Boston, expecting their heaviest snow in years.

As per the National Weather Service Aviation Weather Center, delays in aviation could continue to Monday.

Earlier, the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center cautioned of catastrophic ice impacts lingering farther south with prolonged power outages.

In the wake of the winter storm, the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) shared that Trump has approved emergency declarations for 12 states covering nearly 900 counties and parishes and 4 tribal nations.

Secretary Kristi Noem said in a post on X that the Trump administration has worked around the clock with state and local governments ahead of this winter storm.

As much of the United States braces for a historic winter storm this weekend I am working closely with state and local authorities, federal partners, and the White House to give Americans the resources they need to stay safe.

This storm system is expected to produce heavy snow,… pic.twitter.com/5d8F4XkYaR

— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) January 23, 2026

"Response to this storm has been locally executed, state-led and federally supported", she said.

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Earlier, the National Weather Service said that the winter storm would sweep across the eastern two-thirds of the US over the weekend. Noting that sub-zero lows will spread from northern and central plains into the northeast through Sunday, NWS said that sub-freezing temperatures are expected each night as far south as the Gulf Coast.

It said that extremely cold temperatures would expand across the eastern two-thirds of the US, with very cold weather continuing through the next week, and advised preparing for the "life-threatening cold," as wind chills and prolonged cold could pose a risk of hypothermia and frostbite.