Winter storm warnings: Advisories for much of East Coast – live

At least six state governments so far have declared a state of emergency due to the cold weather.

Arkansas, Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, New York, and Nebraska have all hit the big red button for at least part of their jurisdictions in response to vicious temperatures over the past few days.

That is not counting the individual counties and cities that have taken the same step.

“During this time, it is important to check in on vulnerable friends and family, and do whatever you can to stay safe and warm,” said New York governor Kathy Hochul this evening, announcing a travel ban for empty trucks and trailers.

Alabama governor likewise warned on Sunday night: “We are anticipating unusually cold temperatures in Alabama this week, so I am urging everyone to be prepared, take caution traveling and stay weather aware.”

US natural gas supplies have suffered their steepest drop in more than a year due to the extreme cold, according to Reuters.

Gas industry analysts expected record demand from across the nation on Tuesday, though Monday’s estimates were revised downward due to many businesses and government offices being closed for MLK Jr Day.

Meanwhile, the temperatures reportedly caused many gas wells to freeze, along with other equipment used to extract fuel from the ground.

231 million: that is the estimated number of Americans currently experiencing below-average temperatures for this kind of year, according to Fox Weather.

The broadcaster said that over 20 cities broke their low temperature records on Monday, with Dallas’s cold smashing a target that had stood for nearly a century.

The Buffalo Bills have triumphed 31-17 over the Pittsburgh Steelers in a snowbound gridiron football match at Buffalo’s Highmark Stadium.

Bills fans celebrated touchdowns by throwing snow in the air like confetti, while the team reportedly advertised 200 openings for temporary snow shovellers to work through the night before the game.

Nevertheless, the conditions weren’t nearly as bad as at Saturday’s game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Miami Dolphins, which was the fourth-coldest n NFL history.

The two teams faced off at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium in temperatures of -4F, with wind gusts of up to 27mph delivering a brutal -27F chill.

The Texan state power grid operator has asked residents and businesses to use as little electricity as possible tomorrow in order to avoid a repeat of 2021’s deadly winter weather fiasco.

Now Ercot, the non-profit that operates Texas’s main energy grid, has issued a “conservation appeal” for Tuesday 16 January.

“With the winter storm encompassing the entire state, and temperatures forecasted to be colder this evening and into tomorrow morning, Ercot is asking Texans to conserve electricity use, if safe to do so,” the organisation said on Monday morning.

The brutal weather has resulted in some striking images across the US over the past few days. Here are a few:

Southwest and United topped the list of US airlines for cancelled flights, with 768 and 459 trips nixed respectively – making up19 per cent and 18 per cent of all those carriers’ flights.

Houston and Dallas were the worst-hit airports, with 283 and 207 outgoing flights cancelled on Monday. Denver, Chicago, and Nashville followed not far behind.

Some airports had more than half of their outgoing flights cancelled, including Reagan National Airport just outside Washington DC and Denver International.

At least nine people have died in circumstances suspected to be linked to the current winter storms, according to media reports and local authorities.

In Portland, Oregon, county officials are investigating two possible hypothermia deaths, according to The Portland Tribune, with three more killed over the weekend when trees fell on their homes.

Officials in Mississippi said that one person had died while driving on Highway 49 just south of Silver City at around 8pm local time on Sunday, while Tennessee reported one more weather-related death without giving any details.

And in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, three homeless men have been found dead with suspected hypothermia in the freezing cold streets over the past few days.

A resident in Orchard Park, New York appeared to take a video of thundersnow Sunday evening.

The footage was taken near the Buffalo Bills’ stadium, where the team was expected to play against Pittsburgh in the playoffs. The game was postponed until Monday.

Chicago has opened warming centres after the officials announced temperatures there might reach -30 fahrenheit, according to NBC News.

The National Weather Service issued a two-day winter weather warning for the city, which began on Sunday night and is expected to be in place until Wednesday.

“Residents can expect extreme cold and should limit time spent outdoors. Impacts include slippery road conditions due to ice and the wind chills could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as 30 minutes,” city officials said in a statement.

The city is specifically using the the Harold Washington Library at 400 S State St as a warming centre for people wishing to escape the chilly weather. Officials also plan to use six community centres run by the Department of Family Support Services.