A winter blast of snow, ice and bitter cold hits the US.

A major winter blast of snow, ice, wind and falling temperatures in the United States caused hazardous travel conditions from the central and southern states to the East Coast early Monday, prompting the closure of schools and government offices in several states.

Snow and ice covered major highways in Kansas, western Nebraska and parts of Indiana, where the state’s National Guard was activated to help stranded motorists. At least 8 inches of snow was expected, along with wind gusts of up to 45 mph.

The National Weather Service issued winter storm warnings from Kansas and Missouri to New Jersey.

“For places in this region that receive the greatest amounts of snow, it may be the heaviest snowfall in at least a decade,” the weather service said.

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Gary Wright wore a parka as he and his husband removed the thick layer of ice from their SUV in the slippery parking lot of an apartment in Missouri. Wright said he will be working remotely on Monday, but wanted to scrape his vehicle as an excuse to spend a little time in the snow. She is also looking for boots for her two older dogs that “don’t move at all” when their paws hit the cold ground.

The polar vortex of ultracold air usually rotates around the North Pole. People in the United States, Europe and Asia experience its intense cold as the vortex escapes and rushes south.

Studies show that the rapid warming of the Arctic is partly to blame for the increasing frequency of the polar vortex extending its icy domain.

Canceled classes

School closures are expected to be widespread on Monday. Districts in Indiana, Virginia and Kentucky began announcing cancellations and delays Sunday afternoon. Kentucky’s Jefferson County Public Schools canceled classes, extracurricular activities and sports for its nearly 100,000 students.

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Schools were also canceled in Maryland, where Gov. Wes Moore declared a state of emergency on Sunday and announced that the state government would be closed on Monday.

“Keeping Marylanders safe is our top priority. Stay off the roads during this storm. Prepare your home and family and charge your communication devices in case the power goes out,” Moore said in a statement.

Car accidents proliferate with the arrival of the storm

Over the weekend, at least 600 motorists were stranded in Missouri, authorities said. Hundreds of car accidents were reported in Virginia, Indiana, Kansas and Kentucky, where a state trooper was treated for non-life-threatening injuries after his patrol car was hit.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who declared a state of emergency, said government buildings would be closed Monday.

“We see too many accidents out there for people to not have to be on the roads, so I want to ask: Stay inside,” Beshear said.

Virginia State Police reported at least 135 crashes as the storm entered the state on Sunday. In Charleston, West Virginia, where several inches of snow had fallen by Sunday night, authorities urged motorists to stay home.

Snow and ice forecast

In Indiana, snow completely covered portions of Interstate 64, Interstate 69 and U.S. Route 41, prompting Indiana State Police to plead with motorists to stay off the roads as the Snowplows worked to keep up.

“It’s snowing so hard that the snow plows go through and then within half an hour the roads are completely covered again,” said Sgt. Todd Ringle said.

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About 10 inches of snow fell in Kansas, and final totals are forecast to exceed 14 inches in parts of that state and northern Missouri.

In Kentucky, Louisville recorded 7.7 inches of snow on Sunday, a new record for the date that broke the previous mark of 3 inches set in 1910.

The storm was forecast to move into the Ohio Valley and reach the mid-Atlantic states on Monday, with a hard freeze expected as far south as Florida. Winds downed trees in the Deep South on Sunday.

Air and rail travel was also affected

The storms wreaked havoc on the country’s passenger railways, with more than 20 cancellations on Sunday and about 40 planned for Monday.

“If local authorities are telling people not to travel, it is contradictory to try to offer a full range of services when people are being told to stay home,” said Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari.

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Nearly 200 flights in and out of St. Louis Lambert International Airport were canceled, according to tracking platform FlightAware.

temperatures drop

Starting Monday, the eastern two-thirds of the United States will experience dangerously bone-chilling cold and wind chills, forecasters said. Temperatures could be 12 to 25 degrees below normal.

In Chicago, temperatures hovered around 10 degrees on Sunday and dropped to 11 degrees below zero in International Falls, Minnesota, on the Canadian border.

Northeastern states are more likely to experience several cold days after a mostly mild start to winter, said National Weather Service meteorologist Jon Palmer in Gray, Maine.

Cold air is likely to grip the eastern United States as far south as Georgia, with parts of the East Coast experiencing lows in the single digits, Palmer said.