Twenty-six Americans have died from winter-related issues—18 in Tennessee alone—as the country remains mired in a brutally cold weather pattern that won’t be ending until early next week.
Tennessee is reeling from the 18 weather-related deaths, nine of them from hypothermia. Others died from traffic accidents due to the icy road conditions, and one died of kidney failure when he couldn’t get to a dialysis appointment. Additionally, a married couple died during a house fire, the cause of which authorities say is weather related.
Several other deaths have occurred in the rest of the nation as the bitter cold continues to bedevil much of the country.
Snow is still falling in many areas, and another winter storm watch is being forecast for the Philadelphia area among others.
Temperatures hit rock bottom on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, and in many parts of the country, temps broke records that had been in place since early last century. Records were broken from Chicago to Washington, D.C.
Temperatures were so low in New York that part of Niagara Falls froze in place overnight from Wednesday to Thursday.
Meanwhile, temperatures from Maine to Florida were up to 40 degrees lower than average. Weather watchers are forecasting that this week’s temperatures will end up being the coldest of the year.
Meteorologists have reported that temperatures measured in at below zero everywhere east of the Mississippi and above the deepest parts of the south. The bitterly cold temperatures also look to be sticking around until early next week.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.