WASHINGTON, United States, Jan 26, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - A monster storm barreling 
across the United States had killed at least 11 people on Monday, prompting 
warnings to stay off the roads, mass flight cancelations and power outages 
after a weekend of misery.

The storm dumped snow, sleet and freezing rain across swathes of the country 
from Texas to New England, with temperatures set to fall dangerously low this 
week.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said five people were found dead outside 
over the weekend, telling reporters "there is no more powerful reminder of 
the danger of extreme cold."

In Texas, authorities confirmed three deaths, including a 16-year-old girl 
killed in a sledding accident.

Two people died in Louisiana from hypothermia, the southern state's health 
department said.

Meanwhile, one person was killed and two others injured Saturday during a 
winter weather related collision in southeast Iowa, according to local State 
Patrol.

The PowerOutage.com tracking site showed more than 820,000 customers without 
electricity as of Monday, mostly in the US South where the storm intensified 
on Saturday.

In Tennessee, where a band of ice has downed power lines, more than 250,000 
residential and commercial customers were without electricity, while 
Louisiana and Mississippi -- where such storms are less common -- each had 
over 100,000 outages as of Monday.

The outages are particularly dangerous as the South is being walloped by 
treacherous cold that the National Weather Service warns could set records.

Authorities from Texas to North Carolina and New York urged residents to stay 
home due to the perilous conditions.

"Stay off the roads unless absolutely necessary," Texas's Emergency 
Management Division posted on X.

The storm was moving Monday through the US northeast and southeast Canada, 
with some areas in Toronto seeing record-breaking snowfall.

At least 20 states and the US capital Washington have declared states of 
emergency.

Federal offices have been preemptively closed for Monday and several major 
airports in Washington, Philadelphia and New York had nearly all flights 
canceled for the day.

Tracking site Flightaware.com showed more than 19,000 flights into and out of 
the country had been scrapped since Saturday.

In Maine, a small aircraft carrying eight passengers crashed on takeoff 
Sunday evening at Bangor International Airport, the Federal Aviation 
Administration (FAA) reported.

It was not immediately clear if the crash was weather-related or the 
conditions of the passengers.

President Donald Trump, who was riding out the storm at the White House, said 
on his Truth Social platform Saturday: "We will continue to monitor, and stay 
in touch with all States in the path of this storm. Stay Safe, and Stay 
Warm!"

- Polar vortex -

The brutal storm system is the result of a stretched polar vortex, an Arctic 
region of cold, low-pressure air that normally forms a relatively compact, 
circular system but sometimes morphs into a more oval shape, sending cold air 
spilling across North America.

Scientists say the increasing frequency of such disruptions may be linked to 
climate change, though the debate is not settled and natural variability 
plays a role.

But Trump -- who scoffs at climate change science and has rolled back green 
energy policies -- questioned how the cold front fit into broader climatic 
shifts.

"WHATEVER HAPPENED TO GLOBAL WARMING???" the Republican leader posted.

The NWS warned that heavy ice could cause "long-duration power outages, 
extensive tree damage, and extremely dangerous or impassable travel 
conditions," including in many states less accustomed to intense winter 
weather.

Authorities warned of life-threatening cold that could last a week post-
storm, especially in the Northern Plains and Upper Midwest, where wind chill 
lows were forecast to dip to extremes under -50F (-45C).

Such temperatures can cause frostbite within minutes.