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February 2021 North American cold wave

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February 2021 North American cold wave
File:February 14–16, 2021 US minimum temperatures.jpg
Map showing the very cold temperatures within the United States from February 14–16, 2021
FormedFebruary 6, 2021
DissipatedFebruary 22, 2021
FatalitiesAt least 172
Damage≥ $195.6 billion (2021 USD)
Areas affectedCanada, Central United States, Eastern United States, Northern Mexico

The February 2021 North American cold wave was an extreme weather event that brought record cold temperatures to a significant portion of Canada, the United States and parts of northern Mexico during the first half of February 2021. The cold was caused by a southern migration of the polar vortex, likely caused by a sudden stratospheric warming event that occurred the prior month. Temperatures fell as much as 25–50 °F (14-28 °C) below average as far south as the Gulf Coast. Severe winter storms also were associated with the bitter cold, which allowed for heavy snowfall and ice accumulations to places as far south as Houston, Texas, and contributing to one of the snowiest winters ever in some areas in the Deep South.

The record cold advancing so far south that effects were crippling and widespread. Many regions within the Southern Plains such as Oklahoma, Arkansas and Texas broke or nearly reached record-low temperatures not seen in decades or even a century. In the latter state of Texas, the record cold caused enormous strain on the power grid and froze pipelines, leading millions to lose power and many pipes to burst. At least 172 people were killed directly or indirectly by severe cold,[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] and the damages are estimated to be at least $195.6 billion (2021 USD).[8][9]

Background

As with most cold waves, the origins of the cold wave occurred when the jet stream migrated southward in early February 2021, allowing bitterly cold air from the polar vortex to spill south into the Upper Midwest and Great Plains. The weakening of the jet stream is likely to have been caused by a sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) event that occurred in early January.[10] However, the effects of this event did not materialize within North America until the pattern began to become unstable near the end of the month. An arctic front then proceeded to usher in the cold air by February 6.

Record temperatures

Canada

On 7 February 2021 Uranium City, Saskatchewan, equaled their all time coldest temperature of −48.9 °C (−56.0 °F) previously recorded on 15 January 1974.[11] In Winnipeg, Manitoba, the high temperature did not rise above -20.0 °C (−4.0 °F) for 9 consecutive days, the longest period since 1996.[12] On 7 February 2021, the International Airport weather station in Edmonton, Alberta, recorded a low temperature of -43.6 °C (−46.5 °F) with two consecutive lows below -40.0 °C (−40.0 °F). [13]

United States

The cities of Billings, Montana, and Fargo, North Dakota, experienced their longest streak of sub-zero (0 °F [−18 °C]) temperatures since at least 1983 and 1996, respectively.[14][15][16] Des Moines, Iowa, experienced its sixth-coldest February on record with an average temperature of 15.2 °F [−9.3 °C].[17] The city recorded its coldest temperature of the month on the morning of February 16, with a low temperature of −17 °F [−27 °C]. Two days prior, a record-low high of −4 °F [−20 °C] was recorded.[17] On February 16, Little Rock experienced a temperature of −1 °F [−18 °C], which was the coldest since 1989, with all-time low temperatures being set in Fayetteville, Arkansas, (−20 °F [−29 °C]) and Hastings, Nebraska (−30 °F [−34 °C]).[18]

Snow cover across the U.S. on the morning of February 19

Texas experienced temperatures over 50°F below normal. Records more than a century old were broken: on February 16, daily record lows were broken in Oklahoma City (−14 °F [−26 °C], coldest since 1899 and the second-coldest on record), Dallas (−2 °F [−19 °C], coldest since 1930 and the second-coldest on record), Houston (13 °F [−11 °C], coldest since 1989), and San Antonio (12 °F [−11 °C], coldest since 1989). This put a strain on the state's power grid, resulting in the Southwest Power Pool and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas both instituting rolling blackouts.[19]

Mexico

In the city of Saltillo, temperatures reached as low as −4.5 °C (23.9 °F) early on February 16 as bitterly cold air surged south from Canada and the United States into the country of Mexico.[20] It was the coldest temperature reported in the city since a cold wave in 2014.

Impact

United States

Main article: 2021 Texas power crisis

Texas by far was the state worst affected by the cold wave. A record low temperature at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport of −2 °F (−19 °C) on February 16 was the coldest in North Texas in 72 years.[21] Power equipment in Texas was not winterized, leaving it vulnerable to extended periods of cold weather, leading to widespread power outages.[22][23] Five times as much natural gas as wind power had been lost because of the cold.[24] When power was cut, it disabled some compressors that push gas through pipelines, and the resulting shortage knocked out more gas plants.[25]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Accuweather Update". Twitter. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  2. ^ "Pile-up Update". Twitter. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  3. ^ "Ice Accumulations". National Weather Service. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  4. ^ Paul J. Weber; Jamie Stengle (March 25, 2021). "Texas death toll from February storm, outages surpasses 100". Associated Press. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  5. ^ Celene Castronuovo (February 21, 2021). "Close to 70 dead in states with severe winter weather: report". The Hill. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  6. ^ Estrada, Jesús (February 16, 2021). "Tormenta invernal deja 12 muertos en estados del norte". jornada.com.mx (in Spanish). La Jornada. Archived from the original on February 17, 2021. Retrieved February 16, 2021.
  7. ^ Yaron Steinbuch (February 17, 2021). "At least 23 dead as brutal cold from historic storm ravages Texas". New York Post. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  8. ^ Irina Ivanova (February 25, 2021). "Texas winter storm costs could top $200 billion — more than hurricanes Harvey and Ike". CBS News. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  9. ^ Mitchell Ferman (February 25, 2021). "Winter storm could cost Texas more money than any disaster in state history". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  10. ^ Heim. "Synoptic Discussion - January 2021 - State of the Climate - National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)". noaa.gov. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  11. ^ Giles, David (8 February 2021). "One of the coldest places in Canada was in Saskatchewan". Global News. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  12. ^ "Daily Data Report for February 2021: WINNIPEG A CS MANITOBA". Environment and Climate Change Canada. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  13. ^ "Daily Data Report for February 2021: EDMONTON INTL ALBERTA". Environment and Climate Change Canada. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  14. ^ "Tweet". twitter.com. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
  15. ^ "Tweet". twitter.com. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
  16. ^ "Our Recap of a Frenetic Stretch of Record-Breaking Winter Weather | The Weather Channel - Articles from The Weather Channel | weather.com". The Weather Channel.
  17. ^ a b "February 2021 tied for 6th-coldest on record in Des Moines". www.weareiowa.com.
  18. ^ Brandon Miller (February 16, 2021). "These US cities had the coldest morning in decades -- with some reaching all-time record lows". CNN. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  19. ^ "US cold snap: Why is Texas seeing Arctic temperatures?". BBC News. 2021-02-15. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
  20. ^ "Synop report summary". Saltillo: Ogimet. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  21. ^ "Hundreds of thousands remain without power as more snow is headed to Dallas-Fort Worth on heels of record cold". 2021-02-17. Retrieved 2021-02-18.
  22. ^ "Why Winter Storm Uri Caused Millions of Power Outages in Texas". weather.com. Retrieved 2021-02-18.
  23. ^ McCullough, Erin Douglas, Kate McGee and Jolie (2021-02-18). "Texas leaders failed to heed warnings that left the state's power grid vulnerable to winter extremes, experts say". Retrieved 2021-02-18.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  24. ^ Penney, Veronica (2021-02-19). "How Texas' Power Generation Failed During the Storm, In Charts". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-02-21.
  25. ^ "A Giant Flaw in Texas Blackouts: It Cut Power to Gas Supplies". Bloomberg.com. 2021-02-20. Retrieved 2021-02-21.
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