A sprawling winter storm spread snow, ice, and freezing rain across large portions of the United States, leaving more than a million customers without electricity and disrupting air travel nationwide.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
More than 1 million Americans were without electricity on Jan. 25 as a powerful winter storm coated large sections of the country in snow and ice, forcing airlines to cancel nearly 11,000 flights and leaving hazardous conditions expected to persist for several days.
Air travel disruptions were most severe at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina, Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, and the three major New York-area airports—LaGuardia Airport, Newark Liberty Airport, and John F. Kennedy International Airport—according to flight cancellation data compiled by FlightAware.
American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and Southwest Airlines each canceled more than 1,200 flights on Sunday alone. Delta Air Lines said it was operating on a reduced flight schedule because of frozen temperatures affecting multiple hubs.
The weekend storm stretched from the Southern Rocky Mountains into New England, dumping snow and coating power infrastructure with ice. As of 2:45 a.m. ET, more than 1,047,000 utility customers across the United States were without power, according to PowerOutage.com.
Tennessee was the hardest-hit state, reporting more than 336,000 outages. Nashville emerged as the most impacted city nationwide, with more than 200,000 residents waking up without electricity as thick ice covered roads, sidewalks, and vehicles.
“The combination of freezing rain and ice has hit our community hard today,” Nashville Electric Service wrote on X, adding that ice-laden trees were snapping and pulling down power lines across the region.
Mississippi reported more than 174,000 outages as of Sunday afternoon, while Louisiana recorded nearly 150,000 customers without power. Power restoration efforts were underway in Texas, though tens of thousands remained without electricity.
The Texas Department of Transportation urged motorists to stay off the roads as crews worked to clear snow and ice. “An ode to travelers: STAY HOME! And if you can’t, STAY BACK!” the agency said in a separate X post.
Additional states reporting tens of thousands of outages included Georgia, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Alabama.
President Donald Trump approved federal emergency disaster declarations on Saturday for South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, Maryland, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Indiana, and West Virginia. “As severe weather crosses the Volunteer State this weekend, we are grateful for the Trump administration’s efforts to protect and support Tennesseans,” Sen. Marsha Blackburn wrote on X.
The National Weather Service warned that hazardous conditions would continue into Monday. Forecasts called for up to 18 inches of snow across parts of New England and as much as 0.50 inches of freezing rain in portions of the Mid-Atlantic and the Ohio and Tennessee valleys. The agency also cautioned that states along the eastern Gulf Coast could face severe thunderstorms capable of producing damaging wind gusts and tornadoes.
Utility crews and transportation officials continued emergency operations Sunday as the storm system pushed eastward, with restoration and recovery efforts expected to extend into the coming days.
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