Winter Storm Oaklee LIVE – At least 5 people die in freezing weather as thousands of flights canceled by snow and ice
AT LEAST five people have died in severe weather as a huge winter storm moving across the country continues into the Northeast.
has caused hazardous road conditions in many states, leading to several deaths including that of an infant.
In Missouri, four were left dead after crashes on icy roads Thursday and Friday.
In Kentucky, an 18-month-old died following a violent crash on an icy bridge. Hundreds of crashes have been reported across the US.
The storm is expected to bring snow, ice, and freezing rain from parts of the West all the way to the Northeast, according to the .
Although roads could be slick in the Tri-State region, the precipitation should transition to rain in the immediate New York City area through the weekend, the reported.
Plus, some districts in North Texas canceled classes on Thursday as the area was under a winter storm warning, including cities like Dallas and Fort Worth, reported.
Read our Winter Storm Oaklee path tracker for the latest news and updates...
How much snow should you expect?
According to the , Oaklee will produce at least a foot of snow over parts of the central and southern Rockies.
Oaklee will bring light to moderate snowfall accumulations to areas from central Oklahoma to southern and central Missouri, the northern Ohio Valley, and the southern Great Lakes.
From northern Pennsylvania through New York state and New England, heavier totals of at least 6 inches are expected.
It's possible that a foot of snow may fall in some of these places, per the Weather Channel.
Oaklee on Friday
On Friday, according to the , the Northeast will be free of ice.
For the time being, the heaviest snowfall is forecast in far northern Pennsylvania, much of New York state, and eastern New England.
On the southern edge of the wintry mix, sleet or freezing rain will fall.
In the immediate New York City metro area, Friday's precipitation is expected to be entirely rain. Parts of coastal southern New England may also get a wintry mix or showers.
The effects of Oaklee so far, conclusion
This resulted in the shutdown of Interstate 5 via Grapevine, the key route from Los Angeles to the Central Valley, for many hours on Wednesday, the reported.
Parts of the Southwest and the Rockies were also battered by heavy snow.
Up to a foot of snow had accumulated in Flagstaff, Arizona, and flakes of snow could be seen between 2,500 and 3,000 feet elevation on the north side of Scottsdale.
The effects of Oaklee so far, continued
In the West, Oaklee was the coldest storm of the year in Southern California, according to the .
A dusting to an inch of snow was reported at 3,000 feet elevation near Beaumont and Yucaipa, about 70 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.
From eight to 14 inches of snow fell in the mountains from Lake Arrowhead to Big Bear to Mt. Laguna and Palomar Mountain.
The effects of Oaklee so far
According to the , sleet, freezing rain, and freezing drizzle began over Texas on Wednesday and moved into Oklahoma, Arkansas, and southern Missouri.
Sleet accumulations of one to two inches were reported in McAlester and Norman, Oklahoma; Ft. Smith, Arkansas; and Branson, Missouri on Wednesday.
In Tulsa, Oklahoma, accumulated precipitation made highways treacherous, while in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro region, freezing drizzle made bridges and overpasses hazardous.
Storm causes outages
As of Thursday morning, in northeast Arkansas and west Tennessee were likely without power due to the ice.
In certain sections of the region, ice accumulations of over a third of an inch thick have been observed, causing tree damage.
Oaklee tracks toward the east
Sleet and freezing rain from as far south as central Texas through central and eastern Oklahoma, Arkansas, southern Missouri, and sections of the Ohio Valley since Wednesday morning.
As it moves eastward through Friday, the system will continue to spread its winter mix of snow and ice from the Southern Plains into the Midwest and Northeast, per the Weather Channel.
Roads reopen in SoCal
According to the California Department of Transportation, a section of Interstate 5 known as the Grapevine in Kern County was open as of 6.30am local time.
It was closed due to weather on Wednesday, which isn't uncommon for that section of road, according to .
Flights cancelations continue
For the second day in a row, flight cancelations piled up at Dallas-Fort Worth (DWF) International Airport and adjacent Love Field in Texas.
According to airline tracker , DFW had over 1,100 cancellations as of around 11 am local time.
There were slightly over 200 people at Love Field.
At Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, over 100 flights were canceled, while at St. Louis Lambert Airport, about 80 were canceled.
Thousands without electricity
According to , there were more than 32,000 power outages in Arkansas and roughly 15,000 in Tennessee as of 11am local time.
Numerous crashes on Kentucky bridge
According to the , the 18-month-old was killed in a sequence of incidents involving 12 tractor-trailers and six-passenger vehicles late Wednesday.
The boy was unsecured and flung from one of the damaged automobiles, where he was subsequently struck by a car.
The Kentucky State Police are looking into the matter.
Child dies in Kentucky due to crash
As a winter storm left a path of snow, ice, and sleet on its eastward march, an 18-month-old infant was killed in a sequence of collisions on an icy Kentucky bridge Wednesday, reported.
According to Kentucky State Police, the collisions occurred on the Tennessee River Bridge on Interstate 24 in Marshall County.
Oaklee on Wednesday, part three
Through the , icy or snowy travel affected areas from northern and central Texas through Oklahoma, northern and central Arkansas, central and southern Missouri, and the lower Ohio valley.
Oaklee on Wednesday, continued
Snow was forecast in sections of northern Arizona, Utah, and Colorado's mountains, per the .
Lower elevations from California to southern Arizona were dampened by rain showers.
Some of the rains were accompanied by lightning and tiny hail or graupel, which might cause some regions to flood.
On Wednesday, the storm moved towards the central United States.
Oaklee on Wednesday
On Wednesday, Oaklee brought snow to California's higher altitudes as well as the southern and central Rockies.
This is Southern California's coldest storm of the year, with snowfall possible at elevations as low as 1,500 feet.
This caused considerable traffic congestion in the high country of Southern California, including the Grapevine, Interstate 15 north of the Inland Empire, and Interstate 8 through the San Diego County mountains, according to the .
Winter storm watches due to Oaklee
From upstate New York through most of New England, including Boston, Hartford, Albany, and Portland, Maine, winter storm watches have been issued.
Snow and/or ice will cause the worst conditions, particularly risky travel, in regions under winter storm warnings and watches.
Winter advisories for these areas
Winter storm warnings and advisories range from California's higher elevations to the southern and central Rockies, the Southern Plains, the Ozarks, and the Mississippi Valley. Dallas-Fort Worth, Oklahoma City, Little Rock, and St. Louis are among the cities that have been issued warnings.
Spreading snow and ice in the Plains
Through the end of the week, Winter Storm Oaklee will spread snow and possibly destructive ice from parts of the West to the Southern Plains, Midwest, and Northeast.
Why did the US start naming storms, continued
Established by the World Meteorological Organization, a list of names are now used to identify Atlantic hurricanes on a six-year rotation.
The only time that there is a change is if a storm is so deadly or costly that the future use of its name on a different storm is considered inappropriate.
In the event that more than 21 named tropical cyclones occur in a season, a supplemental list of names is used.
As for winter storms, The Weather Channel has been naming winter storms since the 2012-2013 winter season.
Why did the US start naming storms?
Tropical storms and hurricanes were tracked by year and the order they occurred until the early 1950s.
However, over time, it was discovered that distinctive names would be needed to reduce confusion and streamline communications when two or more tropical storms occur at the same time.
That came after storm advisories broadcast from radio stations were mistaken for warnings concerning an entirely different storm located hundreds of miles away.
Picking names
The Weather Channel chooses names for snowstorms, and explained the process on its .
“The names will be used in alphabetical order to identify winter storms that meet objective naming criteria based on National Weather Service winter storm warnings, blizzard warnings and ice storm warnings,” the outlet noted.
Who names snowstorms?
The names snowstorms.
The outlet noted that the 2021-22 season is the 10th season The Weather Channel will be naming winter storms.
Airport closures
Find out if your local airport has closed due to Winter Storm Oaklee by contacting your local airline.
The Flight Aviation Administration also has this information available on its ; however, they said in a that it does not cancel flights.
Flyers angry over canceled flights
A user took to Twitter to call out United Airlines for canceling their flight for "no reason."
United Airlines responded to the user by saying that their flight was canceled because of Winter Storm Oaklee.
Road shutdowns in Arkansas
Accidents on Highway 67 in Newport, Arkansas have caused the road to shut down.