Washington: US authorities issued wide-ranging safety advisories and emergency preparedness measures on Friday as a powerful winter storm threatened large parts of the country with heavy snow, crippling ice, and prolonged power outages, expected to impact 200 million people.
The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warned that plunging temperatures and expected power disruptions could increase the risk of fires and carbon monoxide poisoning linked to home heating equipment, including space heaters, furnaces, fireplaces and generators.
“Working smoke and CO alarms save lives,” the CPSC said, urging households to ensure alarms are installed on every level of the home and outside sleeping areas, tested monthly, and fitted with battery backup to function during outages.
The agency said portable heaters are involved in an average of 1,600 fires annually, causing about 70 deaths and 150 injuries each year between 2020 and 2022.
As winter storm Fern advances, the US Department of Energy (DOE) said it is prepared to take emergency action to prevent blackouts. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has asked grid operators to maintain close communication with the department and be ready to deploy unused backup generation at data centres and major facilities.
“We have identified more than 35 GW of unused backup generation that exists across the country and are taking action to ensure that if the nation needs it, the generation will be made available,” Wright said, adding that the administration would act to “mitigate blackouts and lower energy costs for the American people.”
According to the DOE, power outages cost Americans about $44 billion each year. The department said its draft emergency order would require backup generation resources to be made available only after demand response options are exhausted and just before a reliability emergency is formally declared.
Weather agencies warned that the storm could affect more than 200 million people across dozens of states, bringing destructive ice to parts of the South and heavy snow from the Plains through the Midwest and into the Northeast. Forecasts showed the potential for widespread travel disruptions, including major flight delays and cancellations, as well as multi-day power outages in some regions.
Several states moved to declare emergencies and activate response plans as conditions deteriorated. Officials urged residents to avoid unnecessary travel, stock emergency supplies and prepare for extended periods without electricity or heat.
The CPSC also cautioned against the improper use of generators, noting that gasoline-powered units can emit as much carbon monoxide as hundreds of cars. From 2012 to 2022, about 750 people died from carbon monoxide poisoning linked to generators alone, the agency said. It stressed that generators should only be used outdoors, at least 20 feet from buildings, and never inside homes or garages.
Residents were also advised to use battery-powered flashlights instead of candles during outages and to check household products for recalls before use.
Satellite imagery from NASA earlier this week showed extensive snow cover and rapidly forming lake ice across parts of the Great Lakes region as Arctic air spread southward, underscoring the intensity of the cold gripping much of North America.
Winter storms of this scale have previously strained US infrastructure and emergency services. Officials said coordinated federal, state and local responses would be critical in the coming days as the storm unfolds and temperatures remain dangerously low across large parts of the country.
(IANS)
