CHICAGO, Feb 23 (Reuters) – A lethal monster U.S. winter storm saved its grip on the Northern Plains and Higher Midwest on Thursday, delivering heavy snows, freezing rains and gusty winds whereas leaving a whole bunch of hundreds with out energy and grounding a whole bunch of flights.

The broad swath of the northern United States – from Washington state to New England – remained underneath winter climate advisories. Some spots might even see one other 18 inches (46 cm) of snow, winds clocking in at 50 miles (80 km) per hour and wind chills equal to minus 40 levels Fahrenheit (minus 40 C) all through the day, the Nationwide Climate Service mentioned.

On the identical time, elements of the Ohio Valley and the South may see close to record-breaking excessive temperatures, starting Thursday and persevering with over the subsequent few days. On Sunday, it is anticipated to hit 88 F (31 C) in Jacksonville, Florida.

In Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and New York, excessive winds and freezing rains left some 900,000 houses and companies with out energy on Thursday morning, in accordance with Poweroutage.us.

Close to hard-hit hard-hit Grand Rapids, Michigan, a firefighter died in an incident involving an influence line downed by ice, native officers mentioned on Twitter.

The storm delayed or canceled greater than 1,300 flights throughout the nation, in accordance with Flightware.com. And authorities warned that drivers would face treacherous street circumstances.

“Journey on the roads could be harmful with only a hint of ice. However we’re seeing ice caking from 1 / 4 to half inch,” mentioned Richard Bann, of the climate service’s Climate Prediction Middle in Faculty Park, Maryland. “That may be virtually not possible.”

In Ann Arbor, Michigan, house of the College of Michigan, nearly 20,000 houses and companies misplaced energy. Nathan Pietryga, supervisor of the long-standing faculty hangout Pizza Bob’s, counted himself one of many fortunate ones.

“I made it to work, a little bit shuffling on the ice,” he mentioned.

Courses on the college weren’t canceled, however college students have been suggested to make use of discretion. Pietryga indicated he anticipated to promote some pizza. “We have been right here ceaselessly, the youngsters will are available,” he mentioned.

A separate storm spawned uncommon climate in California, the place a lot of the state was underneath excessive wind and winter storm warnings.

Uncommon winter flurries have been reported in San Francisco whereas blizzard circumstances have been anticipated in excessive elevations – even within the Los Angeles space. By Saturday, as much as 8 ft (2.4 meters) of snow may accumulate on Mount Baldy, about 45 miles (72 km)east of Los Angeles within the San Gabriel Mountains.

“Snow is on the best way and lots. We’re doing our greatest to brace for it as a way to be prepared for some powtastic days at SoCal’s raddest mountain,” Mt Baldy Resort mentioned in a tweet, saying it was closed on Thursday.

Specialists say the rising frequency and depth of such storms, interspersed with excessive warmth and dry spells, are signs of local weather change. Whereas the East Coast has skilled a comparatively delicate winter, the Northern Plains has skilled an excessive one by way of snowfall and low temperatures, in accordance with the climate service.

On Thursday morning, snow was falling at a fee of 1 to 2 inches an hour in Minneapolis, a Midwestern metropolis in a metropolitan space that’s house to about 2.9 million individuals. New accumulations added to the 8 inches of snow already dumped by the storm.

Video footage and pictures on social media confirmed vehicles caught on roadways, whereas streets and walkways have been coated in drifting snow.

“Huge-time flakes coming down right here,” storm chaser Aaron Jayjack mentioned in a video he posted on Twitter from Minneapolis. “That is the ultimate push of the storm, and actually seems to be heaviest snowfall but.”

The Minneapolis college system was holding lessons remotely for greater than 29,000 pupils for the remainder of the week. Dozens of faculty districts additionally canceled lessons in North and South Dakota, Colorado, Michigan and Wyoming.

The storm was anticipated to dissipate on Thursday.

Reporting by Brendan O’Brien in Chicago and extra reporting by Wealthy McKay in Atlanta; enhancing by Jonathan Oatis

Our Requirements: The Thomson Reuters Belief Ideas.