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Over 235 million Americans will experience temperatures either at or below freezing, forecasters say
Owen ScottMonday 01 December 2025 11:16 GMTComments
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Another huge snowstorm is set to blanket huge swathes of the United States this week, after a separate weather system threw post-Thanksgiving plans into chaos.
Flights across the country were grounded this weekend, as the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and Central Plains were blasted by cold air.
Now experts at USA Today are warning that up to 6 inches of snow could fall in parts of the country on Tuesday, as millions of Americans brace for further disruption.
“A winter storm will approach the Mid Atlantic and Northeast beginning Monday evening with a threat of snow and ice across the interior portions of both regions,” a spokesperson for the NWS Weather Prediction Center said. “Any snowfall and ice will present hazardous travel concerns, especially across the interior Northeast U.S.”
The worsening weather will hit Kansas and Missouri first, drenching both in snow before building into steady rain which will sweep across Mississippi, Alabama, Western Georgia, Arkansas and Kentucky, according to experts at The Washington Post.
open image in galleryExperts are warning that snow could hit huge parts of the US as travel chaos from the weekend continues (National Weather Service)Snow will hit Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania on Monday night before the cold weather blasts New York and New England, forecasters say.
More than a foot of snow is expected in parts of New England before dwindling into rain.
Experts told USA Today to expect the cold weather to last for the first 10 days of December, to varying degrees of intensity.
The FOX Forecast Center has estimated that over 235 million Americans will experience temperatures at or just below freezing during the weather event, with experts suggesting the bitter cold snap is unseasonal.
The freezing temperatures are largely driven by a weakening in the Polar Vortex, as the La Niña weather pattern takes hold.
The devastating weather comes after a huge weather system hit the country on Friday and Saturday, dumping up to 25 inches of snow in parts of New York, Iowa and Michigan.
open image in galleryExtreme weather over the weekend meant huge parts of the country saw snow on ThanksgivingWith the snowstorm continuing into Sunday, at least 12,350 flights were delayed coming into, leaving or travelling within the United States yesterday, according to FlightAware.
Around 1,020 flights were cancelled on that same day.
Many of the cancelled flights over the weekend were set to take off from Chicago O’Hare International Airport, with 1,030 cancellations taking place on Saturday at that airport alone. Around 800 were delayed, too, according to FlightAware.
Over the weekend, a plane slid off an icy runway as it turned onto a taxiway at Des Moines International in Iowa.
The Endeavor flight, a subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, landed at 9.30 pm on Saturday before it slid from the runway.
open image in gallerySome 12,354 flights were delayed coming into the United States on Sunday with 1,020 being cancelled (Getty Images)Eventually, all 54 passengers deplaned via the stairs and were bused to the terminal instead of exiting as normal at the gate.
At the time, experts were warning passengers about increased travel disruption with around 53 million people from South Dakota to New York placed under weather alerts.
“Buckle up and be ready for travel disruptions over the holiday weekend. Crews may struggle at times to keep up with heavy snow on roads and highways across the Midwest and Great Lakes,” said AccuWeather Meteorologist Alyssa Glenny told USA Today, as thousands of families headed home. “This stormy and cold pattern is expected to continue through the first week of December.”
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