(Reuters) – A winter storm brought snow, ice and freezing temperatures to a wide swath of the United States on Sunday, with about 60 million people in more than a dozen states from Kansas to New Jersey under winter storm warnings, advisories or watches.
The storm was moving toward the mid-Atlantic, where Washington, DC, braced for heavy snow and bitter cold on Monday, the same day that the US Congress is scheduled to meet to officially confirm the election of Republican Donald Trump as president.
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson told Fox News on Sunday that the weather will not stop lawmakers from doing their jobs.
A blizzard prevailed in Kansas and parts of northwest Missouri by Sunday afternoon, the National Weather Service said. Roads were covered in snow and ice, and officials urged citizens to avoid travel.
In total (EPA:) Snowfall between six and 12 inches (15 to 30 cm) was expected from southern Ohio to Washington.
In northern Kentucky and southern West Virginia, freezing rain and sleet will produce “dangerous ice accumulations,” the service said. The rear of the storm system, meanwhile, produced severe thunderstorms that could spawn tornadoes in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.
The storm forced the cancellation of hundreds of flights, including more than 275 in Kansas City and St. Louis, according to aviation tracking website FlightAware.
The governors of several states, including Kansas, Kentucky, Arkansas, West Virginia and Virginia, have declared states of emergency.
The storm will move offshore by Monday night, but bone-chilling Arctic air is expected to move in behind it, with daytime temperatures forecast Monday and Tuesday to be 10 to 20 degrees F below average from the Great Plains to the East Coast, according to the weather service .
