Freezing temperatures in several places in the US and Canada can cause frostbite on the skin in just five to ten minutes.
Meteorologists warn, according to the BBC.
Several US states are hit by heavy snowfall and wind on Friday, which is causing major problems.
Thousands of flight departures have been canceled at major airports in the United States, and a cold wind warning has been issued that covers around 135 million people for the next few days, writes ABC News.
– Serious stuff
On Thursday, President Joe Biden warned about the powerful winter storm:
– This is not like the snow days when you were a child. This is serious stuff, Biden said during a press briefing at the White House.
According to meteorologists, the winter weather could be the worst in the US for several decades, with temperatures as low as minus 45 degrees in some places.
During Friday, the weather can also develop into a so-called “bomb cyclone”, a term for storms that hit areas intensely and quickly.
During Friday, the weather is expected to worsen, with cold and strong gusts of wind especially in the Midwest in the USA, according to CNN.
Affects the homeless
The severe winter cold also affects America’s many homeless people.
In Portland, Oregon, four shelters have been opened to take in people who stay out in the cold, writes NTB.
Homeless Steven Venus spoke to the AP on Thursday, after sleeping on the pavement in sub-zero temperatures the night before.
– It felt like my toes froze to ice and were going to fall off, he said.
Aid organizations in the city fear that people will fall asleep in the cold and freeze to death.
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In the area around Detroit, Michigan, some of the shelters are almost full, but people are being squeezed in.
– We are not sending anyone back out into this cold, says a spokeswoman for the refuge center COTS to the Detroit News.
Four homeless people lost their lives in Salt Lake City in a cold wave that lasted until Monday, according to the New York Times.
In January, federal authorities estimated that around 230,000 people are homeless in the United States.
Hundreds of thousands without power
Hundreds of thousands of people are without electricity as a result of the powerful winter storm.
Friday morning local time, over 95,000 households in each of the states of Georgia and Connecticut lost power, according to the Washington Post.
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