More Than 1M Still Powerless After Ice Storm

(AP) - More than a million people shivered in ice-bound homes across the country tonight, waiting for utility crews to restring power lines brought down by a storm that killed 23 as it moved from the Southern Plains to the East Coast. But with temperatures plunging, utility officials warned that it could be mid-February before electricity is restored to some of the hardest-hit places of Kentucky, Arkansas, and Ohio. More»

2 killed; more rainfall expected in Oregon

(NEWSER) - Days after a new "Snowmaggedon" slammed the Pacific Northwest, an ice storm and floods have left two dead in the region. Seattle's snow began Tuesday night; the city measured a daily snowfall of 6.8 inches early yesterday, blowing away the previous record of 2.9 inches in 1954. Washington's governor declared a state of emergency as airports and schools closed and at least 300,000 households suffered blackouts. A six-truck crash cut off a key highway through the Cascades, Reuters reports. More»

Seven killed in storms

(AP) - Schools closed and thousands of homes and businesses had no electricity today as a storm spread a coating of ice and snow on roads and power lines from the southern Plains to the mid-Atlantic states. At least seven deaths had been blamed on the weather. Highway department crews were out in force spreading salt and sand on the accumulating ice. More»

Europeans grapple with worst winter in years

(NEWSER) - While much of the US basks in unseasonably warmish weather, Europe continues to be locked in a deep freeze that's getting even colder. More than 100 people have died in Ukraine, Italy is suffering its coldest winter in 27 years, and conditions are so severe in Serbia that thousands have been stranded in -22 degree cold along with six feet of snow, reports the BBC . Food and medicines are being airlifted in, and helicopters are attempting to move the most fragile Serbians to safety. Authorities are also scrambling to get help to people in Greece, Spain, and Italy. Nearly 600 passengers were stranded this week for seven hours in an Italian mountain train when the brakes and electrical cables froze. Temperatures have plunged as low at -40 degrees in Russia—which is -52 with the wind chill factored in. More»

And business is booming

(NEWSER) - Weird trend story of the holidays: ABC News says people in the South are apparently very happy to shell out big money to have their yards covered in fake snow. One company says it has "booked" more than 230 tons of the stuff this month, up from 140 tons last December. "It's just absolutely exploded this year," says the president of the Ice Man. "We don't know why." More»