Temperatures drop as a strong winter storm hits the US, disrupting travel and prompting emergency declarations

Temperatures drop as a strong winter storm hits the US, disrupting travel and prompting emergency declarations

A major winter storm battering much of the central and eastern US is causing record-breaking temperature drops and harsh snow conditions that have led to flight cancellations, road closures and several state emergency declarations.

The storm is affecting nearly every state, with more than 100 million people in the US currently under winter weather and wind chill warnings, which the National Weather Service calls a “once-in-a-generation event.”

As an arctic front moves eastward, record-breaking temperature drops are observed.

Denver experienced a drop of 24 degrees Fahrenheit in just seven minutes this Wednesday afternoon. A drop of 37 degrees in one hour at Denver International Airport is the biggest ever recorded there, according to the National Weather Service in Boulder.

And Cheyenne, Wyoming, saw a 30 degree Fahrenheit drop in temperature in just 10 minutes and a record 43 degree F drop in one hour.

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency Wednesday, saying, “Communities across the state are about to see temperatures they haven’t experienced in a decade or more.”