Winter Weather and Power Grid

The NWS warns up to 100 million people from the Southwest to the Carolinas to brace for a rare, dangerous ice storm that forecasters describe as historically high-impact for both ice and snow. A shallow cold layer will produce freezing rain that freezes on contact, and with an Arctic air mass keeping surfaces below freezing for days—especially in unusually affected areas like Arizona and Texas—accumulated ice could cause prolonged multi-day power outages; officials urge staying off roads during freezing rain and watching for raindrops when surface temperatures are below freezing.