United States: 21 people have died there as the US struggles with a winter storm that has seen temperatures drop as low as -45C.

More than 200 million people – around 60 percent of the US population are under some form of weather warning or advisory, with the brutal cold expected to continue through the Christmas weekend. The Kansas Highway Patrol stated that three people died in separate car accidents as a result of drivers losing control of their vehicles on icy roads.

According to the National Weather Service, temperatures in inland states have plunged, the Des Moines, Iowa, feeling like it is -38C and Montana reaching -45.6C, making frostbite likely in less than five minutes.

The Great Lakes region, which includes the lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, is still experiencing heavy snowfall and blizzard conditions, with up to 4 feet of snow forecast on the eastern side of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie.

Gusty winds have snapped trees and taken down power lines, with at least 1.4 million homes and businesses without electricity, although this number had fallen to about 550,000, as per the report.

According to the website poweroutage.us, Tennessee, New York, Maryland, and Connecticut were the next worst-affected states, followed by Maine, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and North Carolina.

“This is not like a snow day when you were a kid – this is serious stuff,” the US President Mr. Biden stated.

Canada is also dealing with a severe storm that has caused thousands of homes to lose power and caused hundreds of flights to be rescheduled or cancelled. A major roadway near London, Ontario, has been closed off due to reports of up to 100 vehicles involved in various collisions.

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