By Karen Stokes
Deanne Criswell, U.S. FEMA Administrator (Photo/FEMA.gov)
Just in time for the holidays, extreme cold and snow is sweeping throughout the country starting on Thursday.
President Biden addressed the severe weather situation, “This is really a very serious weather alert here. And it goes from Oklahoma all the way to Wyoming, and Wyoming to Maine. And it’s of real consequence.
So I encourage everyone — everyone, please heed the local warnings. We’ve contacted — we’ve tried to contact 26 governors so far in affected regions.”
Cold temperatures will stick around through much of the Christmas weekend, making for a colder-than-normal holiday.
The holidays are a peak travel time and there have already been delays and cancellations. Deanne Criswell, U.S. FEMA Administrator said that as we see this cold weather and wind increase expect more airline cancellations and delays throughout the next few days.
Greyhound and Amtrak are requesting customers to check service alerts due to the weather.
As a ferocious blast of Arctic air heads through the country it is especially lethal for the city’s homeless population.
“The most vulnerable are always a concern when we have extreme cold weather,” said Criswell. “Check with your local jurisdiction for more information on resources and shelters.”
Some options for local warming centers are Milwaukee Repairers of the Breach, 1335 W Vliet and St Bens Parish, 930 W State St or call the 211 hotline for more information.
“The power companies will be working quickly to get the power restored because cold weather situations can be very dangerous,” said Criswell. “If people have generators they need to be very cautious to make sure they are using it properly and make sure that they aren’t bringing additional carbon monoxide into the home.”
Go to weather.gov to get information and resources on what to do to stay safe in extremely cold weather.