Follow US Immigration and US Life: From January 6th to 7th, influenced by an Arctic cold wave, more than two-thirds of the continental United States will experience its lowest temperatures in 20 years.
The National Weather Service has warned that wind chill factors could cause temperatures in some areas to drop as low as minus 60 degrees Fahrenheit (approximately minus 51 degrees Celsius). Skin exposed to the air for just a few minutes could suffer frostbite, and in severe cases, it could be fatal. Some local governments have issued warnings, urging residents to stay indoors and stock up on food and daily necessities.
On January 6th, many places in the United States set new low-temperature records. Temperatures in Chicago dropped to minus 23 degrees Celsius, North Dakota to minus 31 degrees Celsius, and in Minnesota, where it reached minus 35 degrees Celsius, all public schools were closed for the day—the first time the entire state has closed schools in 17 years.
In the capital, Washington D.C., the temperature was still 4 degrees Celsius on the morning of the 6th, accompanied by cold winds. By the early hours of the 7th, the temperature was expected to plummet to minus 10 degrees Celsius, a temperature difference of nearly 15 degrees Celsius overnight. The local government has released a cold-weather hotline to provide the public with the latest weather information and consultations.
The National Weather Service explained that this low-pressure circulation system, which originates from the Arctic and rotates counter-clockwise, is called a "polar vortex." In the past, the polar vortex usually remained over Canada, but due to the interaction of various climatic conditions this time, it has pushed deep into the United States, covering more than two-thirds of the country. The last time the United States was hit by a polar vortex was in 1994.
The extreme cold weather has severely disrupted transportation in the United States. According to the website flightaware.com, more than 4,100 flights were canceled and 5,700 were delayed on January 6th. On January 5th, approximately 4,000 flights were canceled. New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport was temporarily closed to clear snow.
According to reports from CNN, the extreme cold weather has already caused at least 13 deaths across the United States, most of which were due to traffic accidents.
