The impact of winter has not yet been lifted, with erratic and severe weather sweeping across much of the United States, with heavy snowfall, impassable roads in the upper Midwest and destructive winds sweeping across the plains.
As parts of the Mid-South braced for thunderstorms, forecasters said the storms would spread eastward, threatening swaths of the eastern United States by Monday, with mid-Atlantic states and Washington, D.C., at greatest risk from high winds and tornadoes.
AccuWeather called the coming weather a “triple threat March megastorm” that would affect nearly 200 million people in the United States, warning that travel could be disrupted as elements of wind, snow, rain and cold could develop into bomb cyclones and become one of the most impactful weather events in the U.S. so far this year.
“If multiple atmospheric factors come together, there could be a swing in severe weather over parts of the mid-Atlantic on Monday, which could produce one of the most impactful and dangerous early-season severe weather events in the region in the past decade,” AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter said.
Among the dangers are damaging straight-line winds and the possibility of some tornadoes, including a particularly strong tornado near Baltimore and Washington, D.C., that crossed Virginia into North Carolina, Porter said.
Further north, from near New York City to southern New England, “flooding downpours are possible Monday night. Brief, intense rainfall is possible in some locations, with rainfall amounts of 0.5 inch to 1 inch in less than an hour possible, causing flooding, particularly in urban and poorly drained areas.”
The National Weather Service warned that severe storms with damaging winds would sweep through much of the eastern United States by Monday evening. The race begins Sunday afternoon and travels through the Mississippi, Tennessee and Ohio Valleys.
Related: Brutal early-season heat wave threatens California and other Western states
The storm threat is expected to move into the Appalachian Mountains early Monday and then move toward the East Coast, where “severe thunderstorms with widespread damaging winds and a few tornadoes” are expected during the day, the weather service said.
The weather service said a stretch from parts of South Carolina to Maryland is most likely to experience the most damaging winds Monday afternoon. These may include Raleigh, North Carolina; Richmond, Virginia; and the nation’s capital. The weather service said the risk is increased (albeit much lower) extending north to New York and south to Florida, with thunderstorms possible in New England.
The National Weather Service reported that more than 20 inches (50 centimeters) of snow had fallen in parts of southeastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin as of Sunday afternoon, with additional snow possible in places like Minneapolis during a blizzard warning issued by the weather service.
More than 600 flights in and out of Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport were canceled on Sunday, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks flight disruptions. Dozens more planes were scrapped in Detroit.
Royce said areas from central Wisconsin to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula could see more than 2 feet (60 centimeters) of snow, with isolated snow totals higher on the peninsula. He added that reduced snow accumulation in places like Chicago and Milwaukee could still cause problems for commuters on Monday.
Wisconsin snowplow driver Aaron Haas said it was one of the worst storms he’s seen in years. Around the city of Marshfield on Sunday, Haas was building snowdrifts as tall as his truck.
“When you’re on the highway outside of town, you can’t see anything,” he said.
Jim Allen, 45, who lives in the Upper Peninsula, said his family stocked up on essentials and he prepared to clear the snow several times Sunday with shovels and snow blowers.
“We’re basically ready to sit down for a few days if need be,” Allen said.
As of Sunday afternoon, more than 210,000 utility customers were without power in six Great Lakes states, according to PowerOutage.us. Some of them started on Friday, when wind gusts reached 85 mph (135 kph) in the area.
The Nebraska Emergency Management Agency said about 30 National Guard members were deployed in the state to help fight multiple wildfires across large swaths and grasslands.
The agency said the three largest wildfires had caused more than 900 square miles (2,330 square kilometers) of damage as of Saturday. One death from the fire was reported on Friday, and Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen urged residents in a press release to comply with local evacuation orders, adding that winds on Sunday “should be very strong.”
The weather service issued a wind warning for much of Nebraska on Sunday, with gusts possible as high as 60 mph (97 kph) during the snowfall. Royce said high winds will affect areas from the U.S.-Mexico border to the Great Lakes and from Denver eastward to the Appalachian Mountains.
Contributed reporting by The Associated Press
