Polar
Vortex II Set To Strike US This Week
America
is set to be hit by another blast from the polar vortex - although
temperatures are likely to be higher than last week's extreme
conditions.
13
January, 2004
The
polar plunge is expected to move south from Canada, bringing colder
air and sub-zero temperatures to the US this week.
Forecasters
say it will sweep over the lower Mississippi Valley and Midwest on
Tuesday and Wednesday, and then hit the East on Thursday.
The
main thrust of the cold air will follow up a couple of days later.
However,
the conditions will be far less challenging than last week's
record-breaking polar air blast which affected more than half the US
population.
"Following
the retreat of Arctic air this weekend, waves of progressively colder
air will move southward over Canada this week," said Paul
Pastelok,
AccuWeather.com's lead long-range forecaster.
"We
will likely see a piece of the polar vortex break off and set up just
north of the Great Lakes spanning January 16 to 20.
"This
next main arctic blast will not rival, nor will be as extensive as
the event last week."
Many
areas are still recovering from last week's polar vortex, which saw
the mercury plunge to -12C (11F) in New York City and -24C in
Chicago.
Ice
has blocked the Delaware River in New Jersey, forcing roads to close
and causing a severe flood risk.
Water
has built up behind the ice dam, and emergency services fear when
temperatures rise it could devastate the area.
"If
in fact the ice jam breaks then we'll have a rush of water which
could cause flash flooding," said Qareeb Bashir, from Trenton
Emergency Management.
A
Coast Guard cutter was brought in to keep shipping lanes open, but
the ice was too thick to break in places.
Residents
have flocked to the river banks to take pictures of the polar
conditions.
Rick
Wilson, from Yardley, Pennsylvania, told an ABC TV station:
"Incredible. I came down here just to take pictures of this. My
grandchildren would not believe this. This looks like something you'd
find in Antarctica."
Sky
News weather producer Jo Robinson said: "After a milder spell,
plunges of cold air are expected later in the week.
“The
first is expected across parts of Canada, the Midwest and eastern
parts of the US over the next few days.
"More
significant cold air will affect those areas by the weekend, but
thankfully it doesn’t look to be as cold as last week."
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