NEW YORK (Reuters) - Temperatures in the U.S. Northeast will be above normal in January and February before turning chillier-than-normal in March, private forecaster WSI Corp said on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, temperatures will be colder than normal in the north-central and western regions of the country, WSI said. "The bulk of the cold weather should now become centered from the Pacific Northwest into the north-central U.S. for the next couple of months as the East recovers from a very cold early December," WSI seasonal forecaster Dr. Todd Crawford said in a report released by the company on Wednesday.

In the U.S. Northeast, the world's largest heating oil market, temperatures will warm up in January, with much warmer-than-normal temperatures predicted for February. The same conditions will apply to the rest of the East Coast, WSI said. "The WSI February forecast indicates much warmer-than-normal along the eastern seaboard," it said. WSI added that the U.S. Southwest and the South and north-central regions of the country will see below-normal temperatures in February and March, after warmer than normal temperatures in January.

_{Bron: Reuters}

Storm slows travel in air, on road.

A winter storm moved toward the Eastern Seaboard on Saturday, a day after blanketing the Great Lakes region with several inches of snow and disrupting holiday travel plans.

Forecasters predicted the storm would continue moving through the Great Lakes region and into New England, bringing snow, sleet and freezing rain. Showers and thunderstorms were expected in much of the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast.

Aviation officials said nearly 300 flights were canceled at O'Hare International Airport on Friday and delays averaged 30 to 45 minutes. They urged travelers to check the status of their flights. Delays at Midway Airport averaged 30 minutes, with about 25 cancellations.


_{Blowing snow hampers visibility for drivers Friday in Arlington Heights, Illinois.}

Both runways at General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, were closed due to snow for about an hour early Friday afternoon and then at least two hours in the evening, airport spokesman Ryan McAdams said.

Two of three runways were closed at Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, Wisconsin, causing many delays and seven flight cancellations, airport spokeswoman Sharyn Wisniewski said.

At Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids, Michigan, snow caused some ground-radar equipment to shut down, forcing the closing of a runway to arriving planes for about two hours, said Tony Molinaro, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration.

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_©CNN

Jan. 1: Marc Siwak teaches his son Max, 4, how to build a snow fort in front of their home in Clawson, Mich., after a storm.

DETROIT —  A fast-moving New Year's Day storm dumped more than a foot of snow on southeastern Michigan, a record blast that made driving hazardous. Authorities reported no deaths or serious injuries from the six-hour burst of snow that started around midnight, but said there were multiple spinouts and minor accidents. The storm left 10 to 16 inches of snow across parts of Oakland, Lapeer and St. Clair counties north of Detroit, the National Weather Service said. The western St. Clair County community of Capac reported 16 inches.

"This storm most definitely packed quite a wallop," said weather service meteorologist David Shuler in Oakland County's White Lake Township. "This will be a memorable storm for the amount of snow it dumped in such a short amount of time. "He said it was the region's heaviest New Year's Day snowstorm on record and was unusual for its intensity and short timeframe. In the heart of the storm, snow fell at a rate of at least 2 inches an hour, with periods of 4 inches an hour.

Utility officials reported scattered power outages Tuesday morning. Farther east, the weather system spread snow across upstate New York and northern New England.

_{Bron: Fox News}
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Jill Sickels of Beverly Hills, Mich., clears her sidewalk, Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2008. A fast-moving, hard-hitting and record-breaking New Year's Day storm moved through southeastern Michigan early Tuesday, leaving more than a foot of snow in some areas and hazardous traveling on roads and freeways. Authorities reported no deaths or serious injuries from the six-hour blast that started around midnight

Intense snowstorm heads for New England.

A Midwestern storm that dropped up to 16 inches of snow on New Year's Day snarled traffic on highways and runways and extended the winter vacation at dozens of schools.

The storm was threatening to cause similar disruptions as it moved into New England. Meanwhile, new snow was falling early Wednesday across much of Michigan and Ohio, where thousands of people had lost power the day before.

Authorities reported no deaths or serious injuries from the six-hour blast of Michigan snow, which started early Tuesday. But they said there were many spinouts and minor accidents on the roadways.


_{People push a car out of a ditch Tuesday in Lake Orion, Michigan.}

The storm extended the winter holiday through Wednesday for students at dozens of schools across southeastern Michigan.

Ten to 16 inches of snow buried parts of Oakland, Lapeer and St. Clair counties north of Detroit, the National Weather Service said. The western St. Clair County community of Capac reported 16 inches.

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_©CNN

Freeze Threatens Citrus, Other Florida Crops.

A wintry system that added inches to record snow accumulations in some Northern states sent temperatures plummeting Wednesday in the South, where farmers scrambled to protect their crops.

Temperatures were expected to drop into the 20s and teens in parts of Florida by Thursday morning, following the 30-degree temperatures some northern parts of the state saw Wednesday.

The cold spell could prove devastating to the state's citrus industry, which is the nation's largest and already has suffered from years of disease and hurricanes.

"We will have a lot of growers across the state pulling all-nighters and keeping a close watch on their groves and the temperature," said Andrew Meadows, a spokesman for the grower advocacy group Florida Citrus Mutual. "We are cautiously optimistic the industry can weather this cold snap without significant damage."

To help growers, Gov. Charlie Crist has signed an emergency order to relax restrictions on transporting produce.

Crops can withstand some cold, but not for long. Thirty-two degrees for four hours will damage an orange, for example, but 28 degrees for that long can actually ruin the tree. Most of the citrus industry is situated south, for this very reason, and in those areas it was not expected to get as cold.

But citrus crops were not the only ones at risk. A broad variety of plants and produce from broccoli and cabbage in the north to strawberries, tomatoes and corn in the south are also threatened.

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_©FOXnews

FERNLEY, Nev.  —  Hundreds of homes sat in as much as 8 feet of water Sunday following a canal rupture as freezing temperatures hindered efforts to get the water to drain away.

As many as 400 homes were damaged when the canal's bank gave way following heavy rainfall produced by the West Coast storm system that had piled snow at least 5 feet deep in the Sierra Nevada and blacked out thousands of customers in three states. At least three deaths were blamed on the storm.


Jan 5: In Fernley, Nev., heavy rainfall ruptured a canal levee, pouring 3 feet of near-freezing water into hundreds of homes, stranding 3,500 people

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_{Bron: Fox News} | Gewijzigd: 24 februari 2017, 13:24 uur, door Joyce.s

Western storms may deliver deadliest winter
Storms offer great skiing, raise avalanche risks; 15 killed since Nov. 12


Nuala keeps watch from a snow bank outside the Piccaro residence in Crested Butte, Colo., after a snow storm passed through the mountain town on Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2008. Powerful storms in the West have delivered the best snow conditions in years but also have claimed lives from Colorado to Alaska, threatening to make this winter outdoor sports season the region's deadliest in recent memory. ? Avalanches have killed at least 15 people across the West since Nov. 12.


This photo released by Crested Butte Mountain Resort shows ski patrolman Eric H. Baumm, right, and Adam Gerber of Crested Butte, Colo. preparing to throw explosives into the powder snow to help control the potential avalanche possibility in the extreme skiing area of the Crested Butte ski area on Sunday, Jan., 6, 2008. Accumulative of over 27.5 inches of snow has fallen at Crested Butte in the past three days, and 8 to 10 more inches is expected in the region in the next 24 hours. Back country snow travel is not recommended in the next 24 hours, says the Crested Butte Avalanche Center.


Travis White of Crested Butte, Colo. shovels snow from a second story deck at Crested Butte Mountain Resort on Thurs., Jan. 10, 2008. More snow is expected in the Colorado Rockies.

[img width=224 height=320]http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/afp/par1674877.rp350x350.jpg[/img]
A man gestures near a car covered by a snow, the result of an avalanche, on a mountain pass in Nizhny Zaramag, 16 December 2007. The traffic along Trans-Caucasus arterial road was blocked by an avalanche and mountain roads throughout the Caucasus are danger to travel in the winter.



DENVER - Powerful storms in the West have delivered the best snow conditions in years but also have claimed lives from Colorado to Alaska, threatening to make this winter outdoor sports season the region's deadliest in recent memory. Avalanches have killed at least 15 people across the West since Nov. 12. In Washington alone, they have claimed nine lives this season, the most in that state since a single slide killed 11 climbers on Mount Rainier in 1981. "I'm not sure if they are taking more risks or if it is a lack of knowledge," said Maj. Rick Albers of the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office in Colorado, referring to winter sports enthusiasts

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_{Bron: MSNBC} | Gewijzigd: 24 februari 2017, 13:24 uur, door Joyce.s

HELENA, Mont. —  Rescuers searched Monday through the remnants of a deadly avalanche, unsure whether more backcountry skiers had been caught up in the slide in northwestern Montana. Sunday's avalanche tore down trees and left snow 20 to 25 feet deep. Two skiers were killed, and rescuers pursued reports that two others might have been caught. But by Monday evening, no one had been reported missing.

Dangerous conditions delayed the start of Monday's search on Fiberglass Hill, a popular area on the other side of the mountain from Whitefish Mountain Resort. Authorities had to blast away an "unsafe snow mass" near the avalanche site, Flathead County Sheriff Mike Meehan said. Once the search resumed, about 100 people used poles to probe the snow in an effort to find any victims. Dogs and a helicopter also assisted in the search, which ended for the night around 7 p.m. but was expected to resume early Tuesday. The victims were identified Monday as Anthony Kollmann, 19, of Kalispell, and David Gogolak, 36, of Whitefish. Gogolak's body was found under about 3 feet of snow and debris. He was not wearing an avalanche beacon, according to the Missoulian newspaper. His brother-in-law was skiing with him and was partially buried but was able to dig himself out, according to the newspaper. Witnesses were adamant that in addition to Kollmann and Gogolak, they saw two other people caught up in the slide, Meehan said. As part of their search, deputies were checking cars parked overnight in the ski area to see whether anyone was unaccounted for, Meehan said. Flathead County Undersheriff Pete Wingert said he did not know whether the brother-in-law could have been one of the two people searchers were looking for Monday. The area is on U.S. Forest Service land, outside resort boundaries, said Donnie Clap, spokesman for Whitefish Mountain Resort. "We set off explosions to mitigate the (avalanche) risk within our boundaries," he said. "When you ski out of bounds, you are really taking your life in your own hands." In Wyoming, three men from that state, identified as Scott Bennett, Alan Jensen and Kim Steed, were killed in an avalanche while snowmobiling Saturday south of Jackson. Avalanches have killed at least 21 people across the West since Dec. 2, according to the National Avalanche Center. The national annual average for avalanche deaths is about 25. Thirty-five people were killed nationwide in avalanches in the 2001-2002 season, the most on record, according to the U.S. Forest Service.


_{Bron: FoxNews}

Foot of snow closes schools in Mich., Wis.

A foot of snow blanketed parts of Michigan and Wisconsin during the night, closing schools Tuesday and causing numerous traffic accidents. At least two traffic deaths were blamed on the weather in Michigan.

Snow started falling Monday and continued early Tuesday, piling up about a foot deep in western Michigan and up to 13 inches deep in some areas of southeastern Wisconsin. A winter storm warning remained in effect through Tuesday evening in parts of Michigan.

Nearly every school was closed in the Grand Rapids region. Most highways in the southern two-thirds of Wisconsin were snow-covered and slippery Tuesday, the Wisconsin State Patrol's Web site showed. Part of Interstate 90 near the Wisconsin-Minnesota state line was closed for about two hours Monday by a pileup on a snow-covered Mississippi River bridge.

Jesse Carlson, who was headed home to Dresbach, Minn., after work in Wisconsin, said he braked to avoid a collision on the I-90 bridge and found himself in the middle of the pileup. "I must have gotten hit four or five times," he said.

Elsewhere, freezing rain on the Plains early Tuesday iced highways in Oklahoma, causing one traffic death and closing schools in parts of the state. One accident shut down Interstate 35 in Oklahoma City for nearly four hours, police said.

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_©NSNBC

Winter storm expected to hit L.A. soon

Flash-flood warnings are issued for burned areas. The cold system is forecasted to bring up to 2 inches of rain along the coast and valleys.

A winter storm is headed toward Los Angeles today, with heavy rains expected during the afternoon commute, forecasters said. Flash-flood warnings will remain in effect from 1 p.m. until late tonight in areas blackened by wildfires, as well as Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Long Beach and other coastal communities, said Stan Wasowski, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in San Diego. Ventura, Oxnard and Camarillo are also threatened with flooding, Wasowski said.

The cold, low-pressure system moving in from the Central Coast may bring up to 2 inches of rainfall in coastal and valley areas, with more expected in the mountains and foothills, forecasters said. The weather service also warned of possible debris flows in burn areas. Snow is expected to blanket the Grapevine area around Interstate 5. Los Angeles County mountains, with the exception of the Santa Monica range, will remain under a winter storm warning through Thursday morning, with close to 2 feet of snow expected to fall as low as 3,000 feet, Wasowski said. Blowing snow is expected to sharply reduce visibility, making travel into the mountains hazardous. Area freeways remained open this morning, said Officer Francisco Villalobos of the California Highway Patrol. Highway Patrol officers were slowing traffic in both directions on Interstate 5 near Gorman because of falling snow, some of which is sticking to the roadway, said CHP Officer Jason Bettini. "It's snowing pretty good," Bettini said.

_{Bron: LA Times}