NEWS
NEWS

The monstrous ice and snow storm Fern freezes two-thirds of the US and leaves several dead

Updated

A strong ice and snow storm hit nearly two-thirds of the territory of the United States this weekend, causing at least ten deaths so far and extensive power outages affecting over a million homes, according to official data and the specialized portal poweroutage.us

A man skis over the SkyDance Bridge during a snowstorm in Oklahoma City.
A man skis over the SkyDance Bridge during a snowstorm in Oklahoma City.AP

In Texas, authorities confirmed three fatalities, including a 16-year-old who died in a sledding accident. In Louisiana, the state's Department of Health reported two deaths due to hypothermia, a direct result of the extreme temperatures during the storm. In the northeast of the country, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani stated that five people were found dead outdoors over the weekend, amidst the intense cold that hit the city.

Regarding the electricity supply, poweroutage.us recorded over a million outages during the day. Although the number decreased as the hours passed, at 9:41 PM local time, there were still 870,735 homes without power. The southern region of the country was the most affected, especially Tennessee, where over 300,000 customers remained without power. There were also over 125,000 outages reported in Mississippi and Louisiana.