Impacts from the historic weekend winter storm continue for millions across the country, with bitter cold putting thousands at risk as utility crews try to restore power to states slammed by freezing rain or snow.
In Tennessee, the storm left at least 34 people dead as the Arctic air-fueled system spread heavy snow and ice along its nearly 2,000-mile-long path.
ABC News reported early Tuesday that "at least 250,000 customers are without power." Some people without power in Tennessee woke up to temperatures in the single digits.
A crippling ice storm over the weekend covered tree limbs and power lines with up to a half-inch of ice or more in the hardest-hit portions of Tennessee. A trained spotter reported one inch of freezing rain in Shiloh, around 90 miles east of Memphis.
Eastern Tennessee, including the cities of Knoxville, Gatlinburg, and Chattanooga, were under a cold weather advisory Tuesday morning.Ā
"Very cold wind chills as low as 5 below zero expected at times," the Morristown National Weather Service Office cautioned. "Locally lower wind chill values will be possible on ridge tops. These very cold conditions could result in hypothermia if precautions are not taken."
TCD Picks Ā» Upway Spotlight
š”Upway makes it easy to find discounts of up to 60% on premium e-bike brands
"Crews are assessing storm damage and making repairs on the ground and in the air," the Tennessee Valley Authority posted on X. "Damage and outages are affecting 12 of our 153 local power companies in parts of Middle and West Tennessee and Mississippi, where we also have damage to our transmission system. TVA and local crews are working around the clock to restore power safely and quickly. All available resources will remain deployed until service is restored."
Tennessee was among several southern and eastern U.S. states still experiencing major power outages as of Tuesday. Mississippi still had more than 140,000 customers without power, followed by over 105,000 in Louisiana, over 37,000 in Texas, nearly 29,000 in Georgia, and more than 10,000 in Georgia and South Carolina, according to PowerOutage.com.
A bitter blast of Arctic air that was swept as far southward as Florida continued to prompt winter weather alerts for millions early in the week. More than 78 million people across portions of at least 18 states were under a cold weather advisory on Tuesday, with over 2 million across parts of seven states under an extreme cold warning.
Climate change is raising the risk of dangerous power outages across the country. Nonprofit Climate Central found that 80% of all major U.S. power outages from 2000 to 2023 were due to weather.Ā
TCD Picks Ā» Quince Spotlight
š”These best-sellers from Quince deliver affordable, sustainable luxury for all
"Many types of extreme weather are becoming more frequent or intense because of human-caused climate change. These events put stress on aging energy infrastructure and are among the leading causes of major power outages in the U.S.," say Climate Central researchers.
|
What's the most you'd pay per month to put solar panels on your roof if there was no down payment?
Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. |
$200 or more š° 
Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips to save more, waste less, and make smarter choices ā and earn up to $5,000 toward clean upgrades in TCD's exclusive Rewards Club.
Cool Picks
