Record East Coast cold makes way for thaw
NEW YORK — The blast of arctic air that engulfed portions of the East Coast broke cold temperature records from Maine to West Virginia and stunned sea turtles in Florida — although a warm-up is coming Monday.
Burlington, Vt., and Portland, Maine, set records, with Burlington falling to minus 20, beating a 1923 record by a degree, and Portland recording minus 11, a degree below a 1941 record. The National Weather Service said Worcester, Mass., which fell to minus 9, and Providence, R.I., which dropped to minus 3 also set record lows, as did Hartford, Conn., where the temperature dropped to minus 9, smashing a 1912 record.
The good news is the bone-numbing air is set to push out of the region.
By Monday, Boston temperatures should return to a more seasonable low 30s.
The city could see temperatures in the mid-40s by Thursday and the low-50s on Friday.
Many Northeast residents endured jaw-clenching temperatures and brutal wind chills over the weekend as cleanup continued from the storm that dropped as much as 18 inches of snow in some places on Thursday.
The temperature registered minus 37 Saturday at the Mount Washington Observatory in New Hampshire, one of the coldest places on the planet. The wind chill was minus 93. It tied Armstrong, Ontario, as the second coldest spot in the world.
And in Atlanta, forecasters warned a mix of low temperatures and precipitation could create icy road conditions there, where the College Football Playoff National Championship will be held Monday night.
Traffic is expected to be heavy as thousands of outof-towners converge on the city and as security is tightened for President Donald Trump, who is scheduled to attend the big game.