“Arctic air mass will bring a prolonged period of much-below-normal temperatures and dangerously cold wind chills to the central and eastern U.S. over the next week,” the National Weather Service tweeted.
Before the deep freeze thaws, a “major storm” will track near the East Coast that could bring snow, ice, blizzard conditions and frigid winds later this week, AccuWeather said. The storm could impact the length of the coast, from Maine to Florida, AccuWeather added.
“Arctic air will remain in place and will spread southward into Florida,” AccuWeather warned, adding that the storm could bring snow and ice could reach as far south as northeastern Florida.
The cold wave, which began creeping across the nation before Christmas, enveloped a swath of the country from Montana and Texas to the East Coast. The Southeast wasn’t spared — Atlanta awoke to 13 degrees on Tuesday, and the high was forecast to barely rise above freezing.
In Wisconsin, the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office said the bodies of two men found outdoors Sunday showed signs of hypothermia. In Bismarck, N.D., police said cold weather “may have been a factor” in the death of a 52-year-old man whose body was found lying in the snow.