‘Polar vortex’ pushes freezing weather through US

Lee Tuttle, 66, takes a break from blowing snow off his driveway to pose for a portrait on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2014, at his home on Miller Road in Flint, Michigan. He said he hadn’t really noticed the icicles forming in his beard. The eastern half of the US and Canada shivered Monday as a dangerously cold whirlpool of dense air known as a “polar vortex” threatened to break decades-old records and freeze exposed skin within minutes. AP PHOTO/THE FLINT JOURNAL, MICHELLE TESSIER

CHICAGO—The eastern half of the US and Canada shivered Monday as a dangerously cold whirlpool of dense air known as a “polar vortex” threatened to break decades-old records and freeze exposed skin within minutes.

The bitter weather comes after a heavy snowstorm hit much of the region last week. Officials closed schools in Chicago and other Midwest cities and warned residents to stay indoors.

More than 1,000 flights were canceled Sunday at airports throughout the Midwest. More than 3,000 flights within, into or out of the United States were canceled on Monday, according to industry tracker FlightAware, including nearly 800 at Chicago O’Hare International, one of the country’s busiest airports.

Hundreds more flights were canceled or delayed from other major hubs like New York’s John F. Kennedy or Newark International.

A Delta passenger airplane skidded into a snow bank at JFK on Sunday. Nobody was hurt, but the plane had to be towed to its gate.

“It’s just a dangerous cold,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Butch Dye.

The forecast is extreme: 32 degrees below zero Fahrenheit (-35 Celsius) in North Dakota, and 15 below zero (-26 Celsius) in Minneapolis, Indianapolis and Chicago. Wind chills—what it feels like when high winds are factored into the temperature—could drop into the minus 50s and 60s Fahrenheit (-45 to -51 Celsius).

In New York City, the temperature was expected to drop sharply from about 52 degrees (11.11 Celsius) to about 10 degrees (-12 Celsius) overnight as the arctic air moved in.

In Newfoundland, about 5,000 customers remained without power because of rolling blackouts in recent days, but Premier Kathy Dunderdale said it wasn’t a crisis and government services were still operating.

Frostbite in minutes

It hasn’t been this cold for almost two decades in many parts of the region. Frostbite and hypothermia can set in within minutes.

“I have seen frostbite occur through clothing,” said Douglas Brunette, an emergency room doctor in Minneapolis. “It’s not enough just to be covered. You need clothes made for the elements. You need to repel the wind.”

The Indianapolis mayor upgraded the city’s travel emergency level to “red,” making it illegal for anyone to drive except for emergencies or seeking shelter. The last time the city issued such a travel warning was 1978.

Elnur Toktombetov, a Chicago taxi driver, said that an hour into his shift, his Toyota’s windows were still coated with ice on the inside

Many cities came to a virtual standstill. School was called off Monday for the state of Minnesota.  Government offices and courts in several states closed.

Southern states were bracing for possible record cold temperatures, too. With two freezing nights ahead, Louisiana citrus farmers could lose any fruit they cannot pick in time.—With a report from AFP

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