Arctic air plunged the eastern half of the United States into a bitter cold — as far south as Alabama and Georgia — and broke records Friday. The cold snap followed snow and ice storms earlier in the week, and weather forecasters warned that more sleet and freezing rain will be possible in the coming days. Residents also had to deal with more school cancellations, power outages, road hazards and water main breaks. Here’s a look at the latest weather and the effect it is having around the country:
Niagara Falls: The deep freeze transformed Niagara Falls into an icy spectacle, encasing the trees around it into crystal shells and drawing tourists who are braving below-zero temperatures. The Niagara River is flowing below the ice cover, so the falls aren’t completely frozen. But days of subzero temperatures have created a thick coating of ice and snow on every surface near the falls, including railings, trees and boulders. The massive ice buildup has become a tourist magnet.
Ferries frozen out: A Boston-bound commuter ferry carrying more than 100 passengers had trouble steering in the ice and had to be towed to port.
The ferry Massachusetts departed Hingham about 8:30 a.m. Friday right behind an icebreaker, said Alison Nolan, an official with Boston Harbor Cruises. After the ferry went off course, the icebreaker towed it to Boston. No one was hurt, and the boat was not damaged.
What’s in a name?: “Polar vortex” is so last year. Some forecasters are calling the record-setting bout of icy air the “Siberian Express” because winds coming from Russia are traveling over the Arctic Circle and pushing into Canada and the U.S.
New records: Bitter cold temperatures have shattered decades-old records from Cincinnati to Washington to New York.
The National Weather Service said the low Friday got down to 6 degrees at Reagan National Airport, just across the Potomac River from Washington. At Baltimore’s airport, the temperature dipped to a record low of 2 degrees. In western Pennsylvania, temperatures dipped to minus-18 in New Castle, minus-15 in Butler and 6 below zero in Pittsburgh — all records.
NASA shivers: Schools in Alabama sent students home early, and NASA shut down its Huntsville facility as a storm began coating north Alabama with ice, sleet and snow. Forecasters say much of northern Alabama and Georgia could get snow and sleet.
