Posted on 01/22/2026 12:39:52 AM PST by Morgana
A state of emergency was declared in several states ahead of a massive winter storm that could bring more than a foot of snow to much of the country.
More than 200 million people across parts of 30 states now face winter storm warnings from Friday through Sunday.
Meteorologists were expected to issue more within the next couple of days and upgrade some to winter storm warnings as the storm approaches.
When the blizzard hits, temperatures are expected to plunge as much as 30 degrees below normal in the Dakotas and Michigan, with the wind chill falling between 35 and 50 degrees below zero in some parts, according to the Weather Channel.
The National Weather Service now warns that 'nearly everyone east of the Rockies' will see some effect from the snow, ice or cold from Friday into early next week.
A state of emergency is now in effect in South Carolina, allowing state officials to mobilize resources, activate the National Guard and coordinate response efforts, and in Texas, Governor Greg Abbott activated the state emergency response resources on Tuesday to prepare for the storm.
North Carolina Governor Josh Stein also declared a state of emergency on Wednesday, telling residents: 'A winter storm is approaching and now is the time to prepare.'
'Please get ready. Get everything you need in advance of the storm and have a plan in case your power goes out,' he urged North Carolinians, encouraging them to 'stay home and off the roads this weekend unless absolutely necessary, so first responders can do their jobs safely and effectively.'
Maryland Governor Wes Moore made a similar plea to residents as he declared a 'State of Preparedness' to boost the state's response and collaborations for potential impacts from the storm.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
That’s good to hear. My son moved out there last spring. He has a 4x4 and chains and is used to driving on snowy/icy roads so hopefully he’ll be okay.
Although it seems that first day of bad roads is always a wake up call for a lot of drivers. Sitting in the ditch and thinking “Oh - I guess I really DO need to drive slower in this stuff!”
This weekend? That reminds me, I forgot to check on my Tee-Time for Sunday...
My local ALDI’s was OUT of bread. Completely out. Calm down, folks...snow melts...IF we even get any.
That sounds like a good idea to me!
Funny story:
Back before my daughter was born, we were doing a major remodel of our house, mostly to prepare for having her around. This was in January, and a considerable cold snap had arrived, with lows ~ 10 deg. F: We had pretty much gutted over half the interior, including the old bathroom and the 3 inside walls around it. The old propane heat was taken out too, and all we had was radiant (mostly "quartz") space heaters. The bathtub though was still the old "claw" type tub with legs, so, basically it was sitting in the back end of the house in a large open area, with temporary plumbing hooked up. Everything looked, uh, "rough". So... getting cleaned up without being badly chilled involved getting in the tub with 4 space heaters arrayed around it, firing at it on high, the elements glowing brightly. I got in the tub and joked to my wife that I looked like a victim of cannibals cooking me for soup!
Hmmm... sweat in late June (or get washed out) or freeze in January...
We’ll be windy at times in this one, but not THAT windy.
I looked at the NWS forecast graph for Cornelia, GA:
It looks like there could be 0.6” of ice: Nothing like the almost 2” of ice we got in ‘09, but, bad enough, esp. for GA.
The good news for GA is that the ice is followed by heavy rain above freezing, which should melt the ice. We got the opposite: The 2” of ice in some areas followed by a week of bitter cold. Some people were still running generators 3 weeks later.
THAT sounds like a good way to pass the inclement weather time.
Nothing better than a sit in the hot tub with snow falling and a white russian in hand. :)
That’s funny. What an ordeal.
It will be nice in California and Arizona this weekend.
Let us pray. 😉
Perhaps we should resume the ice sculpture mockery from back in the day, that might drive ManBearPig back into hiding...
Yeesh. We are back “down” to 11” of snow coming, but with lots of sleet, now... Thankfully, any freezing rain still looks minimal, and on top of snow/sleet, not under it.
Temps get too cold for salt to do much...
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