On Sunday, November 9th, the United States Midwest region geared up to face the first wave of cold air this season. The temperature dropped abruptly in the northern plains, with snowfall, as a snowstorm swept eastward across the Great Lakes region. The southern region also prepared to face severe cold weather.
In the Chicago area, scattered snowfall was reported on Sunday, signaling the onset of heavy snowfall in communities around Lake Michigan later in the evening. The National Weather Service issued winter storm warnings, expected to last until Monday, predicting gusts of up to 30 miles per hour (about 48 kilometers per hour), rapid snow accumulation of up to 18 inches (about 46 centimeters), and the possibility of thundersnow, a weather phenomenon where thunder occurs during a snowstorm.
Kevin Doom, a meteorologist at the Romeoville Weather Bureau in Illinois, stated that this snowstorm band would bring significant snowfall, causing inconvenience for morning commuters on Monday.
Meteorologists warned that due to snowfall rates exceeding 3 inches per hour (8 centimeters), road conditions in the northeastern part of Illinois would be “dangerous to impossible” for travel.
As temperatures dropped in the Midwest, the meteorological department issued winter weather warnings and travel advisories for Michigan, Indiana, and Wisconsin.
Parts of Minnesota, Nebraska, and South Dakota were forecasted to receive scattered snowfall, with wind chills approaching zero degrees. Some regions had measurable snowfall the day before, including 4 inches (10 centimeters) of snow in southwestern Minnesota and over 5 inches (13 centimeters) in northern parts of Iowa.
Ohio, West Virginia, and Kentucky issued cold weather warnings, and freezing temperatures were expected to persist until early Monday morning from Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama, to Georgia in the vast southern regions.
Meteorological experts issued special guidance to gardening enthusiasts, indicating that freezing alerts signified the end of the growing season.
Meteorologists in Arkansas cautioned, “Take immediate action to protect delicate plants from the cold.”
(Reference: Associated Press)