Parts of the United States are experiencing record-breaking wind chill factor that is so cold it is literally off the official National Weather Service charts.
The northeast of the country was hit by a powerful arctic explosion, with temperatures at New HampshireMount Washington is plunging to a new low of -46F (-43C).
But wind chill temperature is how cold people actually feel while they are outside, and it depends on the strength and temperature of the winds.
Strong winds of 96 mph on Mount Washington produced a wind chill factor of -108F (-78C) – comfortably below the low point on the National Weather Service (NWS) wind chill chart, which is at – 98F (-72C).
The photo at the Mount Washington Weather Station. Pic: Cleveland National Weather Service/@NWSCLE
“The Worst Weather in the World”
NWS said Mt Washington, the highest peak in the Northeast WEit “lived up to the reputation of having the worst weather in the world”.
New Hampshire is one of several states on wind chill alerts, combined Massachusetts, Connecticut, MaineRhode Island, Vermont and much of New Yorkwhere a “Code Blue” warning was issued for sub-zero temperatures.
Thousands of properties lost power and emergency shelters were opened.
While the freeze is expected to be relatively short-lived, people are being warned that conditions are life-threatening, with schools closed in some cities due to the risk of children suffering from hypothermia and frostbite.
A meteorological expert says forecasted wind chills could cause frostbite on exposed skin in just 10 minutes.
Meteorologist Donald Dumont of the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine said, “It’s painful.”
One of the cities hardest hit by the freeze is Boston, Massachusetts, where Mayor Michelle Wu has declared a state of emergency.
Record low temperatures are expected Saturday there, and in one of the state’s other cities, Worcester, where residents have already endured lows of 3F (-16C) over the weekend.
Boston’s all-time low is -2F (-19C), reported in 1886, and Worcester’s is -4F (-20C), which dates back to 1934.
“Citizens were disappointed”
The freezing conditions, which are coming from the east CanadaCome as the southern states recover from another winter storm that brought days of rain, sleet and ice.
In Texas, Thousands of residents were still without electricity Friday night, even as conditions heat up. One of the largest cities in the state, Austin, has seen 30% of customers without power at any given time since Monday.
Mayor Kirk Watson admitted the city “failed its citizens.”
“The situation is unacceptable to the community, and it’s unacceptable to me,” the Democrat said.
One resident, Edward Kim, has had no electricity or heat since Wednesday. The 43-year-old revealed he was using a generator to keep his home “alive”.
Another local, Will Rison, said his elderly parents were also without electricity for three days.
“You can only wrap yourself in so many blankets and wait,” she added.
While no deaths were reported from the disruptions, the weather was blamed for at least a dozen road deaths in Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma this week.
