WASHINGTON — A powerful winter storm pushing from Texas toward the Midwest and Northeast on Saturday is bringing heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain, prompting emergency declarations and travel warnings across multiple states. Forecasters said Arctic air colliding with moisture from the Gulf of Mexico could trigger prolonged outages and dangerous icing, with the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center warning that “Catastrophic impacts are expected where freezing rain amounts exceed a half inch,” Jan. 24, 2026.
More than 200 million people were under some form of winter weather watch, warning or advisory, and at least 14 states plus Washington, D.C., had declared weather emergencies as of Friday, Reuters reported. Snow was already falling in parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, while the winter storm was forecast to spread east through the weekend with the most damaging icing likely from the Southern Plains into the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic.
Winter storm hazards: “catastrophic” ice and heavy snow
Forecasters expect the heaviest snowfall to arc from the Plains through parts of the Ohio Valley and Mid-Atlantic into the Northeast. The Weather Prediction Center said totals exceeding 12 inches are likely in some areas.
Ice remains the bigger threat for many communities along the storm’s southern edge. The center said catastrophic impacts are possible where freezing rain exceeds a half inch, with more than 1 inch possible in parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and the southern Appalachians. Ice that thick can bring down trees and power lines and leave roads impassable.
Emergency declarations widen as the winter storm expands
In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for 134 counties and urged residents to stay off roads unless necessary, according to his office. “Whenever we go through any type of disaster, job number one is always protecting lives,” Abbott said.
States across the South and Mid-Atlantic also staged road crews and utility workers ahead of the winter storm, warning that outages could last longer than a typical snow event if ice is widespread.
Travel disruptions and outage risks from the winter storm
Air travel was already being hit hard: More than 8,000 weekend flights were canceled nationwide as the winter storm approached, according to The Associated Press. Transportation agencies also warned that driving could become treacherous quickly as temperatures drop.
Utility companies cautioned that ice damage can linger beyond the last precipitation, because frozen branches can continue falling as winds pick up or temperatures swing.
Past storms offer a warning
The warnings have revived memories of the February 2021 freeze that crippled parts of Texas’ power system. A joint staff report from federal regulators and grid reliability officials urged stronger winterization and coordination after widespread equipment failures, and NOAA’s post-event summary of the “Great Texas Freeze” described the event as record-setting and costly, leaving millions without power.
Forecasters said the winter storm should continue shifting east through Monday, with bitter cold and dangerous wind chills lingering behind it. Officials urged residents to monitor local forecasts and warnings, limit travel when conditions worsen, and check on neighbors who may be vulnerable to the cold.
