An arctic blast gripped the Northern Plains, Midwest and Great Lakes on Saturday morning, warning of freezing temperatures for millions of Americans.
Six million People were under winter warnings Friday from northern Minnesota to upstate New York, as snow totals on Lakes Erie and Ontario are expected to reach 3 feet or more.
National Weather Service warned that Arctic airspace is delivering the coldest temperatures since last winter. Wind chills across the northern Plains and upper Midwest are expected to drop below zero Saturday morning. According to the agency, wind chills could drop to minus 30 to 40 degrees in parts of North Dakota.
The National Weather Service said the heaviest snow accumulations are expected east of Lake Ontario, where up to 60 inches of snow could fall in some isolated areas around Watertown, New York, by early next week.
New York Governor Kathy Hochol declared a state of emergency for several counties, including Erie and Oswego, on Friday. At times, snowfall rates will be blinding at 3 to 4 inches per hour, and may be accompanied by thunderstorms, a rare weather phenomenon that combines a blizzard with thunder and lightning. , creates dangerous travel conditions.
By Friday night, more than 20 inches of snow had already fallen on the shores of Lake Erie in parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York, according to the National Weather Service.
Erie, Pennsylvania, recorded 30 inches, the highest total on record, according to the agency.
Travel disruptions have halted post-Thanksgiving travel plans, particularly along Interstate 90 between Cleveland and Buffalo.
The interstate was closed Friday afternoon between Interstate 79 in Pennsylvania and the New York state line, New York’s Erie County Executive Mark Polone-Cars said during a news conference. Other routes likely to be affected include Interstate 81, north of Syracuse, New York;
The National Weather Service said Friday that travel “could be very difficult to impossible” in areas downstream of the Great Lakes.