Later this week, Texas and the US South are expected to be hit by a winter storm that could cause transport chaos and blackouts.Later this week, Texas and the US South are expected to be hit by a winter storm that could cause transport chaos and blackouts.
According to Peter Mullinax, a forecaster at the US Weather Prediction Center, trees, roads, and power lines from San Antonio to northern Louisiana will be covered with 4 to 6 inches (10 to 15 centimeters) of snow and ice that will fall across southern Oklahoma and Texas, including Dallas.
Mullinax predicted that the system "will be a disruptive one with significant accumulations of snow and ice." Wednesday night is when it will begin to grow, then on Thursday it will get stronger before sweeping east across the South on Friday.
In addition to causing extensive power outages, the storm is expected to ground or delay aircraft operations and impede transportation in an area where salt trucks and snow plows are uncommon. Any recurrence of cold raises concerns about the stability of the state's ailing power supply, even though temperatures won't get close to the severe lows experienced during the storm in February 2021 that killed over 200 people and left millions without power for days.
Texas' grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, issued a warning on Monday about potential tight power conditions as a result of the storm, predicting power disruptions in the state.
As the Dallas-Fort Worth region gets ready for the University of Texas and Ohio State football teams' Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, snow is expected to fall. The game is still planned for Friday, according to organizers as of Monday.
The problems will extend beyond snow and ice. Along the Gulf of Mexico coast, from Corpus Christi, Texas, to Lake Charles, Louisiana, there is also a chance of severe rain, which might cause flooding in places like Houston.
Snow is expected to accumulate from central Arkansas to Memphis as the storm progresses east, according to Mullinax. Any additional effects—which might include snow in Asheville, North Carolina, where people are still getting over Hurricane Helene from 2024—will depend on the system's trajectory.
During the storm, temperatures will plunge to freezing and below, but by the weekend, they will be milder.
Texas' grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, issued a warning on Monday about potential tight power conditions as a result of the storm, predicting power disruptions in the state.
As the Dallas-Fort Worth region gets ready for the University of Texas and Ohio State football teams' Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, snow is expected to fall. The game is still planned for Friday, according to organizers as of Monday.
The problems will extend beyond snow and ice. Along the Gulf of Mexico coast, from Corpus Christi, Texas, to Lake Charles, Louisiana, there is also a chance of severe rain, which might cause flooding in places like Houston.
Snow is expected to accumulate from central Arkansas to Memphis as the storm progresses east, according to Mullinax. Any additional effects—which might include snow in Asheville, North Carolina, where people are still getting over Hurricane Helene from 2024—will depend on the system's trajectory.
During the storm, temperatures will plunge to freezing and below, but by the weekend, they will be milder.
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