(CNN) – Residents of the central and southern United States faced dangerous roads, school closures and delays in their Covid-19 vaccines when an ice storm swept through the region Thursday morning.
As millions sought refuge and waited for conditions to improve, health departments and elected officials urged residents of affected regions to anticipate potential power outages.
The storm’s magnitude stretched from Texas to Virginia, with the greatest impact expected to be felt in Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, and parts of Missouri and Illinois. According to CNN meteorologist Michael Guy, an estimated 6.5 million people are affected. It is expected that an ice build-up in the area between 7 and 15 centimeters will occur next Thursday evening.
“Expect dangerous and life-threatening travel conditions,” the National Weather Service (NWS) warned Wednesday evening in Louisville, Kentucky.
A snowplow from the Kentucky Department of Highways spreads salt on February 10, 2021.
Areas in eastern Arkansas and western Tennessee along the Interstate 40 corridor could see ice buildups up to 22 inches, according to the local National Weather Service in Memphis. South central and eastern Kentucky are also expected to see about the same number.
“It’s been over eight years since this part of the bluegrass state received an ice storm warning and people may not remember how disturbing these storms are,” said Guy.
The impact of the ice storm
The effects of the severe ice storm can last for days, even weeks, in rural areas of the country.
“We ask Kentucky residents to be wary of dangerous road conditions,” Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said Wednesday. “Please stay off the road unless you have to.”
The first reports from the National Weather Service early Thursday showed that Memphis had accumulated about six inches of ice, and Carbondale, Illinois reported at least four inches.
The highest ice totals through Thursday morning were recorded in central Kentucky, where they measured up to 1.9 inches, according to the NWS Louisville office.
The NWS office in Paducah, Kentucky, said the downed trees and branches were scattered across Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana counties.
According to data from PowerOutage.US, approximately 80,000 customers in Kentucky and West Virginia were without power early Thursday.
In Arkansas, public works crews in Little Rock ran Wednesday to cover overpasses, bridges and steep streets in preparation for road icing. However, conditions throughout the region became especially dangerous at sunset, as Little Rock received up to 12 inches of sleet, according to the NWS. Several accidents have been reported along Interstate 55, Arkansas, near the Blytheville area, in the far northeast of the state.
Many schools, from North Texas to West Virginia, closed on Thursday, and some districts returning to class in person switched to online learning for the day.
Interruptions from the Covid-19 vaccine
The ice storm also disrupted vaccination efforts against Covid-19. In Tulsa, Oklahoma, residents who were due to receive vaccinations on Wednesday were informed of their delay over warnings of winter weather in the area.
According to the Tulsa Health Department website, the health department headquarters and phone bank have been closed. Those with vaccination appointments will be notified of any shifted immunization times.
The Shelby County Health Department, which covers Memphis and parts of Southwest Tennessee, announced its vaccination sites they would be closed on Thursday because of the storm. The schedules of people scheduled for vaccination are moved to February 18.
Denton County, in the far north of the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, canceled its appointments at vaccination clinics on Thursday due to icy conditions, and vaccine recipients will be vaccinated at the Texas race track on Friday. Motor Speedway.
“We don’t want to put our residents on icy roads or let our teams and volunteers work in freezing temperatures,” said Denton County Judge Andy Eads.
– CNN’s Jennifer Hauser contributed to this report.