By Friday, the storm moved further east and blasted Texas, the Southern plains and the Tennessee Valley. The storm is expected to hit the Northeast this weekend.
Yahoo News is collecting anecdotes from residents in the storm’s path. Below are lightly edited excerpts from stories they shared with us this week.
Friday
Hundreds of flights canceled at DFW
DALLAS — The first major storm of the season dumped at least three inches of sleet in parts of North Texas this morning, bringing with it cold temperatures that are expected to last through early next week.
Dallas resident Haley Henderson, a student at Dallas Baptist University, found the lack of preparedness for the storm by city authorities frustrating.
"I find our way of handling the weather to be inconvenient. It's unsafe that the entire city apparently ceases to exist under these conditions," she said.
All classes at DBU were canceled today, as well as night classes on Thursday. The campus will remain closed for the rest of the weekend, affecting various holiday activities such as the Fine Arts Christmas Festival.
American Airlines, American Eagle and Southwest Airlines have canceled nearly 1,000 flights to and from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Dallas Love Field due to the storm. Captain John Carbonari, a pilot with American from Colleyville, has been unable to return to Texas due to the extreme weather.
"I was flying the East Coast the past four days and my last flight into DFW was cancelled," he said. "I wish I were there for the snow. My kids are out of school today horsing around in it."
— Stephen Boyd
North Texas freeze makes freeways a travel nightmare
DALLAS — Waking up Friday morning was far from normal for this Texan. I have adapted to 100-degree weather, but the ice and winter weather still send my senses into overload. It's not the urge to go out and slide down hills or build ice men in child-like fashion; instead, it's the dreaded "I have to go to work in this!" realization.
I began my trek at 8:30 a.m. from DeSoto, heading north to the Galleria Mall area. Getting out of my neighborhood was dicey, but the freeways below the Trinity River where navigable. Crossing the Trinity would be the first test of driving skill due to the rookie drivers that think ice on the bridge means hit the brakes!
I took the tollway to get the North Dallas because it was closer the ground than taking the overpasses that litter 35 and 635. No sweat, until I had to cross over 635. I quickly learned that the northern part of the city got it much worse than us down south.
I arrived at work safely only to hear that the temperature is going to drastically drop the rest of the day making travel home a nightmare. Thanks, Mother Nature. Thanks a lot.
— Rodney R. Fisher
Storm’s brunt descends on St. Louis
ST. LOUIS — When I went to bed at midnight, it was still around 61 degrees outside. When I left for work this morning at 6, the temperature had already dropped to 39, and it was 29 at lunch time and still dropping. The wind has been blowing constantly since yesterday as the cold front was coming in; right now the winds are blisteringly cold and blowing heavily.
So far, we've seen a lot of precipitation, but nothing too dangerous. We had light rain this morning that turned to sleet around lunchtime, and continues to come down. The real precipitation is supposed to hit us later tonight; officials are expecting up to seven inches of snow in my area. Earlier predictions had the rain arriving at 3 p.m., turning to snow by 6 p.m. The estimates were a little off, as everything is moving much faster than predicted. Already the roads are slick, the parking lots are becoming slick and difficult to walk across, and power lines are freezing.
Schools where I live, on the Illinois side of St. Louis, sent students home this morning and have canceled all afternoon and evening activities. I went with a coworker at lunch and got sand bags for his truck. We were hoping this system would all go south of us, but it looks like we are going to get the brunt of the storm.
— Maggie O’Leary
Schools shut in Midland, Texas
MIDLAND, Texas — The sleet and occasional snowflakes, which remained relatively light through most of Thursday afternoon, became heavy in the evening.
Schools are shut down Friday, as officials opted for safety. On Friday morning roads were covered in ice, hampering traffic. According to News West 9, many events across the Permian Basin have been canceled.
Normally, December temperatures are rather mild in Midland, with highs in the 60s and lows above freezing. The Weather Channel reports the average December high to be 61 degrees and the average low to be 32 degrees.
— Calvin Wolf
Surviving sub-zero weather in Glacier National Park
ESSEX, Mont. — The temperature at 7 a.m. today was minus 26. Now it is noon and we have warmed up to minus 21.
One reason for the extreme cold is that it is very clear and sunny. Friends in Whitefish tell me that it is beautiful at about minus 7, but there is a slight breeze creating a wind chill closer to minus 20. Whitefish Mountain resort will open tomorrow with plenty of snow for the skiers.
This extreme weather is both dangerous and scary. However, there are teams of people working to keep everything as normal as possible. For instance, I heard the first snow plow pass by my house at 6 this morning. It was right on time. They were doing maintenance as we have had no new snow lately. There is possibly six inches on the level that fell last Monday. Highway #2 is a major road even though it is only two lanes. It takes a tremendous effort to keep it open, especially through this canyon which runs from West Glacier to East Glacier.
— R.B. McNeil
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