Over the weekend, a historic and expansive winter storm delivered extreme winter weather across much of the central and eastern U.S., producing widespread heavy snow, significant ice accretion, and bitterly cold temperatures.
A mix of sleet and snow first developed across the Southern Plains in the afternoon of January 23 before expanding eastward through January 25. This weather event resulted in severe to locally extreme disruptions to transportation networks, critical logistics nodes, and business operations, particularly across parts of the Deep South and large portions of the Eastern U.S.
Snowfall totals ranged from 2 – 20 inches from the Southern Plains all the way to the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. The highest totals of 12 – 20 inches were recorded in parts of the Northeast and Ohio Valley. Widespread ice accretions, often several tenths of an inch and locally more, glazed surfaces from the Southern Plains through the Mississippi Valley into the Southeast, contributing to dangerous travel conditions and power outages.
The most extensive power outages were reported in parts of Tennessee, Mississippi, and Louisiana, where ice accretions exceeded 0.5 inches. At their peak, the power outages impacted nearly 1 million customers in the morning of January 26. Also mixed in with the snow and ice was heavy sleet, with several inches of accumulation, while winds gusts reached up to 35 – 40 mph at times, especially with the snow across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.
Additionally, during and after the weekend storm, extremely cold Arctic air plunged into the central and eastern U.S. The unusually cold temperatures will impact areas from the Rockies to the East Coast, making this a large scale extreme cold air event for much of the nation. Hundreds of temperature records have already been broken during the past few days, while hundreds more temperature records could be broken during the remainder of this week as the cold air lingers, especially in eastern sections of the U.S.
Winter storm disrupts logistics operations across large parts of the U.S.
Heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures have caused significant disruptions to road, rail, and flight operations across parts of the U.S. over the last couple of days, with logistics disruptions confirmed at transport hubs from New York State to Texas.
By January 26, more than 12,000 flights had to be cancelled or were delayed because of deteriorating weather conditions in many parts of the country. Major airports reported hundreds of flight cancellations, including the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia, the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport in Texas, the Chicago O’Hare International Airport in Illinois, the Philadelphia International Airport in Pennsylvania, the Boston Logan International Airport in Massachusetts, the Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, and the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Southwest Airlines, which account for roughly 70% of passenger traffic in the U.S., were forced to scrap between a third and half of their planned flights during the weekend due to the winter storm. Delta Cargo and United Cargo announced temporary embargoes on selected products and locations in anticipation of disruptions caused by the winter storm, affecting operations at dozens of airports across the U.S.
Airlines such as JetBlue Airways, Spirit Airways, and Frontier Airlines also reported major disruptions to their flight schedules. Affected airlines were reportedly hoping to restore normal flight operations from January 26, but icy conditions on highways and roads could continue to cause difficulties for passengers and aviation staff trying to reach their flights. Additionally, following thousands of flight delays and cancellations within just a few days, aircraft and crew members might still be in the wrong location, which could further complicate the normalization of flight schedules.
In response to increasingly dangerous road conditions, authorities in several states limited or banned commercial vehicles on interstate roadways until weather conditions improve. In New Jersey, restrictions were in place for tractor-trailers and empty straight CDL-weighted trucks on interstates I-76, I-78, I-80, I-195, I-280, I-287, I-295, and I-676 with effect from January 25. On the same day, authorities in Connecticut banned the movement of trucks, RVs, tractor-trailers, tankers and vehicles with trailers on all limited access highways, while authorities in Pennsylvania put in place Tier 4 vehicle restrictions for commercial vehicles as part of an emergency declaration on January 23. From midnight on January 24, the measure prohibited the movement of trucks, RVs, tractor-trailers, tankers and vehicles with trailers on all interstates, the Pennsylvania Turnpike and all extensions until further notice.
While the ban on commercial traffic was lifted in Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania on January 26, Tier 1 vehicle restrictions will remain in place in Pennsylvania, restricting commercial vehicles to the right lane of travel and reducing the speed limit to 45 mph on several routes. Speed restrictions of 35 mph also remain in effect on highways in New Jersey. Despite fewer movement restrictions, icy road conditions will likely continue to impede vehicle traffic in many states until clean-up operations can clear the affected roads of snow and ice.
Prior to the storms arrival in the U.S., several of the country’s major rail freight operators had warned customers of disruptions along parts of their rail networks. BNSF Railway announced that the expected heavy snowfall and extremely cold temperatures were likely to disrupt the movement of trains along its rail network in central Oklahoma, northern Arkansas, southern Missouri and western Kentucky, warning customers to expect delays and longer transit times than usual. CSX Corporation also warned customers of potential operational disruptions, particularly in the company’s southwestern network, including in areas such as Evansville, Nashville, and Chattanooga. Norfolk Southern Railway was reportedly not planning to close any of its intermodal facilities; however, the operator has since confirmed weather-related disruptions at its intermodal facility in Austell, Georgia, which will remain closed until at least the morning of January 27.
In the maritime sector, impacts appear to be limited at the time of writing; however, the Port of Houston and the Houston Ship Channel in Texas reported disruptions to local vessel traffic in the run-up to the storm. The Port of Houston began winding down operations from 18:00 local time on January 24, while the Houston Ship Channel shut down for all vessel traffic around the same time. The port as well as the channel are currently expected to resume full operations from the morning hours of January 27, with some container terminals and truck gates at the port possibly already resuming operations in the afternoon of January 26.
Winter storm causes production disruptions, impacting oil, gas and chemical producers
The winter storm also disrupted operations at a number of companies, particularly at oil, gas and chemical producers located in Texas and North Dakota.
Affected companies included Exxon Mobil Corporation, which halted operations at several units at its refinery complex in Baytown and Celanese Corporation, which shut down operations at its chemical site near Houston. Companies such as Chevron Corporation and Anadarko Petroleum Corporation flagged minor operational challenges such as equipment freezing and delays to repair works because of the extreme cold. Across the entire South Central Corridor, roughly 22% of natural gas production was reportedly shut down due to the weather conditions. In North Dakota, crude oil output dropped by around 80,000 to 110,000 barrels per day (bpd), around 5-10% of the state’s total output, by January 23 as local companies shut in production in preparation for the storm. North Dakota is currently the third largest oil-producing state in the U.S. Localized production impacts have also been reported in industries such as heavy machinery, food making, and electronics amid worsening weather conditions in parts of the country
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