After Arctic Cold Wave, Now Flood Disaster... 37 Million Americans at Risk

Cold Wave and Heavy Rain Threats Persist in Climate

The 'Arctic cold wave' that lasted for over a week across the United States has subsided, but climate threats continue as heavy rains have begun in various areas.

Flood Watches and Warnings Issued for Northwestern California, Texas, and Other Areas in the U.S.

The Brooklyn Bridge in New York, USA, is covered with continuous snowfall on the 19th (local time). [Image source=UPI Yonhap News]

On the 22nd (local time), the U.S. National Weather Service (NWS) reported that the Arctic air mass from Canada is no longer moving southward, causing temperatures to rise sharply across the country. The NWS stated that although some parts of the U.S. East Coast started the morning with subzero temperatures, the cold is easing, and temperatures are expected to return to normal ranges from the 23rd onward.

While the extreme cold has weakened, heavy rain or sleet mixed with rain has begun to fall in northwestern California, along the Great Lakes, Texas, and the lower Mississippi River, increasing the risk of flooding. The southern region, in particular, faces heightened danger. The NWS explained that as the massive Arctic high-pressure system moves out toward the eastern U.S., a long band of hot, humid air is flowing from the Gulf of Mexico toward the southern plains.

Because of this, heavy rain started pouring across southern Texas from the morning, and sleet began falling in northern areas such as Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, and Missouri, where cold air still lingers. This sleet is also expected to turn into significant rainfall as temperatures rise. The humid air from the Gulf of Mexico is forecasted to cross the Midwest and reach the southern Great Lakes region by night.

In northwestern California, a front developed over the Pacific is expected to bring continuous heavy rain for several days. Southern California is also experiencing unstable weather with intermittent rain. There is a forecast for heavy snowfall in the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Local media, based on NWS data and their own analysis, reported that approximately 37 million people along the U.S. Gulf Coast and southeastern regions are exposed to threats of heavy rain and flooding from the 22nd through the 25th.

U.S. CBS Broadcast Reports "Over 90 Weather-Related Deaths in the Past Week"

The area around the waterfall in Paterson, New Jersey, USA, was completely covered in ice on the 18th (local time). [Image source=AP Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, U.S. CBS reported that the recent Arctic cold wave sweeping across the country has resulted in 92 weather-related deaths over the past week, according to their own tally. These deaths were caused by traffic accidents on snowy roads, hypothermia, and other cold-related incidents. Among them was an incident where three passengers were electrocuted when a power line, brought down by strong winds, fell onto a moving vehicle.

In Oregon, an ice storm caused power outages affecting 45,000 people, and blackouts also occurred in Pennsylvania, California, New Mexico, and Indiana.