Icy blast reminds of 2014 ‘polar vortex,’ with worst to come
FARGO, N.D. — An arctic blast spread painful cold across the Midwest on Friday, closing schools, opening warming centres and even intimidating ice fishermen in a taste of the even more dangerous weather expected next week.
Forecasters called it a replay of the “polar vortex” that bludgeoned the U.S. in 2014 — and maybe even colder, with wind chills by midweek as much as 45 below in Chicago.
“We’re going to be feeling it big time,” Jeff Masters, meteorology director at the private Weather Underground, said. “It’s going to be the coldest air in five years.”