Weather

Life-threatening cold grips the Heartland

Across the Corn Belt, a life-threatening cold outbreak is underway. Monday morning’s low temperatures generally ranged from -30° in the far upper Midwest to near 0° in the Ohio Valley. Gusty winds accompany the bitter cold, resulting in dangerously low wind chill temperatures. In the eastern Corn Belt, a deep snow cover is insulating winter wheat, but blowing and drifting snow is stressing livestock and hampering travel.

On the Plains, very cold weather prevails, with sub-zero temperatures noted from Kansas northward. The frigid, breezy conditions are stressing livestock and resulting in dangerously low wind chill temperatures. Snow is providing some protection for winter wheat on the northern and central Plains, although coverage is patchy. Current snow depths include 4 inches in Great Falls, Montana, and 2 inches in Wichita, Kansas.

In the South, an Arctic cold front is crossing the Atlantic Coast States, accompanied by a few rain showers. In the front’s wake, hard freeze warnings are in effect this morning from eastern Texas into the central Gulf Coast region. However, temperatures remain above freezing in Deep South Texas and across Florida’s peninsula.

In the West, mild weather in California contrasts with near- to below-normal temperatures farther inland. Dry weather prevails throughout the West, increasing concerns about summer water supplies in areas—such as California and the Great Basin—moving deeper into a third consecutive year of drought.

Morning Low Temperature Plot

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