Pair of winter storms to pummel US
Thousands without power in Northeast
Winter storm warnings were in effect in more than a half-dozen states early this week especially in parts of the Northeast, where tens of thousands of people were without power.
“We have two storm systems that will impact the country this week,” Alyssa Clements, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, told USA TODAY.
One system organized over the Southwest on Monday before becoming a large-scale winter storm system and ejecting into the southern Plains, Clements said.
The storm is expected to hit portions of the central, southern and eastern U.S. through midweek with a variety of hazards, including a swath of snow and severe thunderstorms with heavy rainfall.
Meanwhile, parts of New England were being pelted by snow Monday.
Power outages in Mass., N.H.: More than 45,700 homes and businesses were without power in New Hampshire and Massachusetts early Monday.
In New Hampshire, Eversource’s outage map reported more than 30,000 power outages Monday, and New Hampshire Electric Co-op reported more than 2,000 outages.
In Massachusetts, more than 10,000 people were without power, according to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency map.
Winter storm brewing: Meanwhile, a second winter storm began forming Monday across the Southwest, where it was set to strengthen in Arizona and New Mexico and eventually bring snow, Clements said.
New Mexico could see 4 to 10 inches of snow across its eastern plains, Clements said.
The system will track through portions of Oklahoma and Texas on Tuesday and into the Midwest on Wednesday.
Oklahoma could see 2 to 4 inches of snow, and the Texas Panhandle could get 6 to 8 inches, National Weather Service forecasters say.
Severe thunderstorms forecast: Thunderstorms were expected Tuesday across portions of the Gulf Coast in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana. Possibly severe storms were expected in those areas overnight Tuesday, Clements said.
Snow also was expected in much of Arkansas and western Tennessee.
In addition, there was a slight risk of excessive rainfall from eastern Texas to south-central Mississippi, where totals could exceed 2 inches.
New York, I-95 corridor snow: In cities from New York to Washington along the East Coast, residents have seen a lack of dramatic winter weather this year. Tom Kines, a senior meteorologist at AccuWeather, told USA TODAY the area could see some snow on Wednesday, and New York City has the best chance of accumulating snow.