Residents of Australia suffer due to floods following torrential rainfalls while as Polar vortex current disruption created chaos in the US Midwest.
A record 1.16 metres (3.8 ft) of rain has fallen across the Townsville area over the past seven days, with another 100 millimetres expected to be dumped over the area.
Major flood warnings have been posted for several rivers.
Up to 20,000 homes are at risk of being inundated if the rains continue, Bureau of Meteorology officials said.
(Photograph:Reuters)
The weather bureau warned of 'dangerous and high velocity flows' along the Ross River after the flood gates were opened fully at the Ross River dam on Sunday, releasing about 1,900 cubic metres of water a second.
Even after the release, the dam was still at 229 percent capacity, holding about 532,000 gigalitres of water, or roughly as much as Sydney Harbour.
(Photograph:AFP)
The US Midwest and Northeast were braced for dangerous subzero temperatures, as the polar vortex was set to blast arctic conditions unusually far south.
The system was set to extend from the Dakotas through New England, with Chicago expecting temperatures to plunge as low as -25 degrees Fahrenheit.
More than 600 flights into or out of Chicago O'Hare International Airport were cancelled and nearly 300 flights were delayed, according to FlightAware.com.
The service's Des Moines, Iowa, branch said 'dangerous, life-threatening cold air' will hit the Midwestern state
(Photograph:Reuters)
The Midwest's worst cold snap in two decades was created by the polar vortex, a reservoir of icy air that usually swirls over the North Pole.
Shifting air currents caused it to slip down through Canada and into the US Midwest this week.
Polar vortex refers to the upper-level jet stream that typically circulates around both the North and South Poles, keeping the coldest air there.
(Photograph:Reuters)
Over 80,000 people are considered homeless in Chicago, according to the Chicago Coalition of the Homeless.
Chicago opened two 24-hour warming centres and extended hours for two more. It designated five city buses to act as overnight warming centres for the homeless.
(Photograph:Reuters)