EFE, Washington
A storm that has blanketed southeastern New Mexico to West Virginia in ice and snow has caused at least three deaths and the cancellation of some 1,900 flights, authorities reported Wednesday.
The National Weather Service (NWS) explained that a solid core of cold air with temperatures well below normal continues to interact with increasing humidity to create an extensive band of ice.
"This weather pattern will continue throughout Wednesday, with the addition of ice, especially in portions of Texas," the NWS added. "The prolonged and significant ice storm continues across much of the southern Plains."
The storm, which the Weather Channel has named "Marta", has left three fatalities in Texas, including a woman who died due to ice on a road in the city of Eldorado, a man who died when his vehicle skidded on a bridge in Arlington, and another person who died in a 10-vehicle collision.
At dawn, more than 185,000 homes and businesses in Texas, Arkansas, and other southern states remained without power, according to powerhouse.us. More than 174,000 of those customers are in Texas.
The Austin, Texas Police Department said it responded to 215 calls about vehicle collisions on Tuesday.
According to flightware.com, this morning there were more than 1,890 canceled flights, of which 750 remained at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, and another 300 at Dallas Love Field.
Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders declared a state of emergency, citing "the likelihood of numerous power line outages," and said that conditions on the streets have created a backlog in the delivery of goods.
Schools and universities in Arkansas suspended classes or switched to distance learning on Wednesday, including Technical University, the entire Little Rock school district, and the University of Arkansas.
Meteorologists at Little Rock's THV11 station warned that temperatures will remain below 0 degrees Celsius during the day on Wednesday, and may drop to 4 below zero Celsius (25 Fahrenheit) at night.
