Massive Winter Storm Puts 230 Million Americans At Risk As Panic Buying Begins

“If you’re younger than 40 years old, then you may be experiencing the worst winter weather of your lifetime depending upon where you are over the next 10-14 days,” meteorologist Ryan Maue warned on X, as Winter Storm Fern and a dangerous polar blast line up to deliver what could soon be a historic, winter storm event across the South, Midwest, and Northeast of the Lower 48 from Friday through Monday.

Parts of Texas, Arkansas and Mississippi that will see potentially crippling “ice accumulation” will also experience severe and prolonged cold … temperatures in some places near 0°F. pic.twitter.com/hryQhSYIQx

— Ryan Maue (@RyanMaue) January 22, 2026

While climate alarmist Al Gore warned about global warming at the World Economic Forum for globalist billionaire elites in Davos, Switzerland, this week, roughly 230 million Americans are grounded in reality and facing what could be a historic snow and/or ice event. This figure represents about two-thirds of the nation’s population, with weather models suggesting the impact area spans 33 states, from Arizona to the Midwest, the South, the Mid-Atlantic, and the Northeast.

As of Thursday afternoon, the National Weather Service has issued winter storm alerts from the southern Rockies across much of the eastern half of the US, covering dozens of major cities including Dallas, Houston, Nashville, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, New York City, and Boston.

Fox Weather reports that Texans are already beginning to panic-buy food and other supplies, as the winter event could lead to travel delays and power grid risks involving the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. Fresh on residents’ minds is the 2021 catastrophic ERCOT grid collapse.

WINTER STORM PREP: Residents in Burleson, Texas, are starting to prepare for the historic winter storm that will impact the region starting Friday. Photos show the bread aisle of a local grocery store completely cleaned out. pic.twitter.com/NTPHkpT5VO

— FOX Weather (@foxweather) January 22, 2026

Our reporting this week has outlined the rising risks of NatGas production disruptions across Appalachia that could pressure already tight power grids in the Mid-Atlantic and or Northeast.

• Appalachian NatGas Output Faces “Intense Losses” As Arctic Blast Drives Power Grid Risk Higher

• NatGas Jumps 75% As Extreme Cold, Blizzard Risks Threaten Appalachian Gas Supply

Winter is Coming for Appalachia
This week’s Appalachian nat gas production is already down 1.1 Bcf/d versus last week, and the extreme cold is just getting started.

Pittsburgh overnight lows are headed to -6.8°F at their most intense levels next week, with this cold coming in… pic.twitter.com/l2oyl80cfe

— Criterion Research (@PipelineFlows) January 22, 2026

Weather observer Ryan Hall, Y’all warned in a note earlier today about the ice threat:

The Ice Threat

I need to say this clearly. For millions of people from Texas through the Carolinas, the ice is the story. Not the snow.

The National Weather Service is using the word “crippling” in their discussions for parts of Arkansas, northern Mississippi, and western Tennessee. That’s not a word they throw around casually. Here’s what’s happening. A pronounced warm nose aloft between 850 and 700 millibars will override sub-freezing surface temperatures across a huge swath of the Deep South. When precipitation falls through that warm layer and then hits the frozen surface, you get freezing rain. And we’re looking at a lot of precipitation falling through that warm layer.

Two distinct zones of severe icing are now becoming clear. The first runs from northwest Mississippi through southwest Tennessee and into southeast Arkansas along the I-30 and I-40 corridors. The second sits over northeast Georgia and the western Carolinas in the higher terrain where frigid air draining south along the Appalachians will keep the surface locked below freezing even as it warms aloft.

Ice accumulations of a quarter inch to three-quarters of an inch are likely across these corridors. Some localized areas could approach an inch. That’s enough for widespread power outages, significant tree damage, and multi-day recovery timelines.

Over the next few days you’re going to see a lot of maps showing freezing rain QPF amounts. Some of these will look absolutely terrifying, with values of one to two inches or more. Be careful with those maps.

Freezing rain QPF shows how much precipitation falls in the form of freezing rain. That is not the same as how much ice actually accumulates on surfaces. Actual ice accretion depends on surface temperatures, wind speeds, and precipitation rates. Those raw QPF maps will be overdone. A major ice storm is increasingly likely, but don’t take those numbers at face value.

Current weather models are being published on X by private forecasters and observers. Note that with the storm still roughly 36 hours out, these models will continue to be refined, and forecasts may change.

WINTER STORM starts in less than 36 hours!

Here’s the most up to date look at who’s seeing what, and remember today is your LAST CHANCE to make final preparations! pic.twitter.com/ctFmaGOM48

— Max Velocity (@MaxVelocityWX) January 22, 2026

Avoid all travel in the “Moderate” and “Enhanced” areas on Saturday / Sunday. We’re looking at significant FREEZING RAIN and SLEET which will make travel impossible in some areas… pic.twitter.com/eWisIQbfLG

— Ryan Hall, Y’all (@ryanhallyall) January 22, 2026

PREPARE NOW for a dangerous winter storm this weekend!

Get flashlights ready to go, generators prepped, groceries and food, and protect pipes, plants, pets, and people. A ton of snow and ice is likely across the dark purple region. Even if shifts happen, it’s better to be safe… pic.twitter.com/YT2Z5Cu7t4

— Max Velocity (@MaxVelocityWX) January 22, 2026

Winter storm timeline — here’s how we see it unfolding

We’re getting a lot of questions about when things go downhill. Here’s our current thinking for the D.C. area (timing may shift a bit as we refine):

4–10 p.m. Saturday
Light snow develops from SW → NE
Temps: 16–20°… pic.twitter.com/DgRULEK1rO

— Capital Weather Gang (@capitalweather) January 22, 2026

Weekend Storm Update: It’s not going to be pure snow for Baltimore. It’s going to snow really hard (thumping) Sunday Morning, but it will likely change to sleet or freezing rain. Some of the modeling has over an inch of sleet! With the storm near the Mouth of the Bay by… pic.twitter.com/7fQEdwwdsO

— Tony Pann (@TonyPannWBAL) January 22, 2026

Deep South folks – here’s our MyRadar forecast with numbers. We’re now <36 hours from the event onset, meaning it’s time to prepare. after days of model windshield-wipering, models are coming into closer agreement.

And yes, the ICE and SNOW zones overlap. Yuck.

Firstly,… pic.twitter.com/mMOHIb2Xfc

— MyRadar Weather (@MyRadarWX) January 22, 2026

Besides snow, the cold weather threat appears historic as well…

Over the next week, record low minimum and/or maximum temperatures are possible across parts of 24 states.

Some of these records date back to the 1800s.

This extreme cold is especially concerning for parts of the South where it will follow a major ice storm. pic.twitter.com/OGqPOnF4Kh

— Ben Noll (@BenNollWeather) January 22, 2026

In the days ahead, temperatures are forecast to dip to *minus 40* in the Upper Midwest.

On Friday morning, wind chills may fall to *minus 55* there, when frostbite can occur in just 5 minutes!

In total, 123 million people can expect subzero temperatures through Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/jGiGXkWCzS

— Ben Noll (@BenNollWeather) January 22, 2026

DANGEROUS COLD IS COMING THIS WEEKEND!

Wind chills BELOW ZERO are expected from Texas to the Northeast on Sunday. Protect pipes, plants, pets, and people! pic.twitter.com/HtrQh9EAxS

— Max Velocity (@MaxVelocityWX) January 22, 2026

Meanwhile, the entire “global warming” narrative that allowed Democrats to loot the U.S. Treasury with climate crisis bills, such as the Inflation Reduction Act, etc., has gone bust.

Time to prepare.