TAMPA, Fla. — As a major winter storm wreaks havoc on life up and down the East Coast, flights in and out of Tampa are also being impacted.
As of 7 a.m. Monday, FlightAware reported a total of 22 flight cancellations and 18 flight delays in and out of Tampa International Airport. Some of the delays hit flights in and out of Washington, DC as snow was blanketing the nation's capital.
Elsewhere, snow and ice blanketed major roads across Kansas, western Nebraska, and parts of Indiana, where the state’s National Guard was activated to help stranded motorists. At least 8 inches of snow was expected, along with gusting winds up to 45 mph.
The polar vortex of ultra-cold air usually spins around the North Pole. People in the U.S., Europe, and Asia experience intense cold when the vortex escapes and plunges southward.
Studies show a fast-warming Arctic is partly to blame for the increasing frequency of the polar vortex extending its icy grip.
Classes canceled
School closings for schools up and down the northern East Coast are expected to be widespread on Monday. Districts in Indiana, Virginia, and Kentucky began announcing cancellations and delays on Sunday afternoon. Kentucky’s Jefferson County Public Schools canceled classes, extracurricular activities and athletics for its nearly 100,000 students.
Classes also have been canceled in Maryland, where Gov. Wes Moore declared a state of emergency Sunday and announced the state government would be closed Monday.
“Keeping Marylanders safe is our top priority. Please stay off the roads during this storm. Prepare your home and family and charge your communications devices in case you lose power,” Moore said in a statement.
Car wrecks proliferate as storm hits
Over the weekend, at least 600 motorists were stranded in Missouri, authorities said. Hundreds of car accidents were reported in Virginia, Indiana, Kansas and Kentucky, where a state trooper was treated for non-life-threatening injuries after his patrol car was hit.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who declared a state emergency, said government buildings would be closed Monday.
“We see far too many wrecks out there for people that do not have to be on the roads, so I want to ask: Stay inside,” Beshear said.
Virginia State Police reported at least 135 crashes as the storm entered the state Sunday. In Charleston, West Virginia, where several inches (centimeters) of snow had fallen by Sunday night, authorities urged motorists to stay home.
Air and rail travel also snarled
The storms caused havoc for the nation’s passenger railways, with more than 20 cancellations Sunday and about 40 planned Monday.
“If local authorities are telling people not to travel, it’s counterintuitive to try to run a full slate of services when people are being told to stay home,” Amtrak spokesperson Marc Magliari said.
Nearly 200 flights in and out of St. Louis Lambert International Airport were canceled, according to tracking platform FlightAware.
Temperatures plunge
Starting Monday, the eastern two-thirds of the U.S. will experience dangerous, bone-chilling cold and wind chills, forecasters said. Temperatures could be 12 to 25 degrees (7 to 14 degrees Celsius) below normal.
In Chicago, temperatures hovered Sunday in the teens (minus 7 to 10 Celsius) and dropped to 11 below (minus 11.7 Celsius) in International Falls, Minnesota, on the Canadian border.
The Northeastern states are more likely to experience several days of cold after a mostly mild start to winter, said National Weather Service meteorologist Jon Palmer in Gray, Maine.
The cold air likely will grip the eastern U.S. as far south as Georgia with parts of the East Coast experiencing single-digit lows, Palmer said.
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