Winter storms bring possible record-breaking Arctic cold, snow to Midwest and Northeast

Icy winter weather blanketed the U.S. on Saturday as a wave of Arctic storms threatened to break low-temperature records in the heartland, spread cold and snow from coast to coast and cast a chill over everything from football playoffs to presidential campaigns .

As the three-day Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday weekend began, the weather forecast was a crazy quilt of color-coded advisories, from an ice storm warning in Oregon to a blizzard warning in the northern Plains to high wind warnings in New Mexico.

Governors from New York to Louisiana warned residents to be prepared for worrisome weather.  

"It's, overall, been a terrible, terrible winter. And it came out of nowhere — two days," Dan Abinana said as he surveyed a snowy Des Moines, Iowa. He moved to the state from Tanzania as a child years ago, but said "you never get used to the snow."

In Portland, Oregon, medical examiners were investigating a hypothermia death as freezing rain and heavy snow fell in a city more accustomed to mild winter rains, and hundreds of people took shelter overnight at warming centers. Weather-related deaths already were reported earlier in the week in California, Idaho, Illinois and Wisconsin.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen announced a state of emergency, citing "very dangerous conditions." Up to 2 feet of snow fell in some areas over the past week, and wind chills were well below zero.

Fallout from the storm included a 100-vehicle stall on Interstate 80 in Iowa, after semitrailers jackknifed on the slippery roadway and blocked traffic. Some cars were stuck in the same spot for five hours as blowing snow encircled the vehicles. Tow trucks had to be brought in to get them off the roadway.  

Vehicles are getting stranded on roads that are showing as "TRAVEL NOT ADVISED" or "IMPASSABLE" Iowa's State Patrol said. 

"Many roads are drifted shut," Sgt. Alex Dinkla of the Iowa State Patrol said. "They (road crews) are working the snow-blowers like crazy to get some roadways open, but they're actually struggling. The minute they get them open, they're actually blowing right back shut because of such high winds we're seeing right now."

Storm postpones NFL playoff game

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul warned of a "dangerous storm" as she announced that the Buffalo Bills-Pittsburgh Steelers NFL playoff game was postponed from Sunday to Monday. Residents of the county that includes Buffalo were told to stay off the roads starting at 9 p.m. Saturday, with the forecast calling for 1 to 2 feet or more of snow and winds gusting as high as 65 mph.  

Record-breaking Arctic temperatures possible

Parts of Montana fell below minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit Saturday morning, and the National Weather Service said similar temperatures were expected as far as northern Kansas, with minus 50 F possible in the Dakotas. In St. Louis, the National Weather Service warned of rare and "life-threatening" cold.

"We've had, now, multiple back-to-back storms" parading across the country, weather service meteorologist Zach Taylor said. That typically happens at least a couple of times in the U.S. winter.

Still, to Eboni Jones of Des Moines, it felt unusual for "how much we're getting all within one week."

"It's pretty crazy out," Jones said while shoveling snow.

Grant Rampton, 25, also of Des Moines, braved a wind chill of minus 20 F to go sledding with friends at a golf course, fighting off the cold by wearing layers of clothing and insulated socks and keeping in constant movement.

"It's a great state to be in," said Rampton, a lifelong Iowan. "There's not as much to do, in winter especially, but you can make your own fun, like out here, sledding with your friends."

The temperature in parts of Iowa could dip as low as minus 14 F on Monday, when the state's caucuses kick off the presidential primary season. And forecasters said it would be Wednesday before below-zero windchills go away.  

Travel limited for many

Republican contenders Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley and former President Donald Trump all canceled weekend campaign events because of the winter storm. Trump said the inclement weather could play in his favor because the frigid temperatures could stifle support for his rivals Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley on caucus night. Trump said that his team told him the low temperatures could be good for his turnout. 

Iowa plow operators struggled Saturday to keep roads clear amid heavy snow and winds gusting up to 30 mph, which blew snow back onto roads as soon as they were cleared. The Iowa Department of Transportation warned against travel across the state.

Cars were stuck for five hours in blowing snow on Interstate 80 after semitrailers jackknifed in slippery conditions. State troopers had handled 86 crashes and 535 motorist-assist calls since Friday, State Patrol Sgt. Alex Dinkla said.

Road crews were "working the snow-blowers like crazy," Dinkla said, but high winds were blowing snow right back onto roadways.

Dinkla said most of the assists were to help stalled cars and trucks get unstuck. Fifteen people have been hurt in accidents. In one wreck on an icy interstate highway, a semitrailer hit a state patrol car and virtually destroyed it. The trooper escaped injury.

Even snow-free roads aren't safe.

"The thing that we're seeing is that people think that roadways are clear in a lot of areas, but they're not able to slow down because the roadways are a sheet of ice," Dinkla said.

In South Dakota, the air temperature Saturday morning was minus 17 F at the Crow Creek Sioux Reservation, but a whipping wind of 30 mph made it feel like minus 48 F. With a homeless shelter already at capacity, tribal leaders opened a gym for others needing shelter.

Taylor Swift braves the cold to watch Chiefs defeat Dolphins

Near-record cold in Kansas City made for a frigid NFL playoff game Saturday night, as the Chiefs defeated the Miami Dolphins 26-7. 

It was minus-4 degrees Fahrenheit at kickoff, easily setting a record for the coldest game at Arrowhead Stadium. But it was wind gusts, whipping through at more than 25 mph and driving the wind chill to a bone-rattling minus-27 degrees, that made the weather truly miserable for just about everyone.

That included pop star Taylor Swift, who once again turned up to see her boyfriend, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

She at least got to watch from an enclosed suite. Most fans huddled outside in parkas, ski goggles and snow pants, and players huddled around heaters on the sidelines as if they were an oasis in the cold. The National Weather Service issued a warning for what it called "dangerously cold" weather that had blanketed the Midwest.

In fact, the cold may have made Mahomes' helmet brittle enough that a hit in the third quarter knocked a chunk of the plastic shell from it. Once officials saw the fist-sized hole, they made Mahomes get a backup helmet from the bench.

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