Extreme temperatures hit the United States, from snowstorms to record heat

A week of extreme conditions across the country: the warmest Mardi Gras on record in New Orleans and in Minneapolis people face one of the biggest snowstorms since the 1880s.

Deep wintry conditions have spread from coast to coast since Wednesday as the round of snow, ice and wind will sweep across the Great Lakes, southeastern Canada and the northeastern US through Friday.

Dustin Hansen, Sioux Falls Operations Manager: “It can be pretty tough as we head into the end of the week here. Our plow operators have been idle outside since yesterday. They’re back on their 12-hour shifts.”

From California to Connecticut, 160 million Americans in 43 states are under winter weather advisories.

There is already one fatality in Michigan, while nearly 900,000 people lost power in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Minnesota. In addition, in the last two days, more than 1,600 flights around the United States have been cancelled.

Taylor Dotson, Traveler: “After getting here early, we got a text saying our flight would be delayed by about an hour and a half and would now leave around 9 o’clock.”

At the same time, parts of Ohio and the southern United States could see near-record high temperatures, starting Thursday.

and for the next several days, including Sunday, when it is expected to reach 31 degrees Celsius in Jacksonville, Florida.

While the east coast has experienced a relatively mild winter, the northern plains have experienced an extreme in terms of snowfall and low temperatures, according to the weather service.

Experts say the increasing frequency and intensity of storms, interspersed with extreme heat and drought, are symptoms of climate change with its effects getting worse by the day.