Arctic blast sweeps US Northeast, temperatures plunge drastically

A powerful Arctic blast across US Northeast sent temperatures plunging perilously below zero degree Celsius. The mercury at New Hampshire, Washington dropped to 105 degrees below zero Fahrenheit (-79 Celsius). In New York, wind-chill warnings were posted. Situation was same in all six New England states - Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine

The National Weather Service (NWS) said the deep freeze would be relatively short-lived, but the combination of numbing cold and biting winds gripping the Northeast would pose life-threatening conditions well into Saturday.

Schools in Boston and Worcester, Massachusetts, New England's two largest cities, were among those closed on Friday over concerns about the risk of hypothermia and frostbite for children walking to school or waiting for buses.

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Michelle Wu, Mayor of Boston, declared a state of emergency through Sunday and opened warming centers to help the city's 650,000-plus residents cope. The NWS has termed the current conditions to be a 'once-in-a-generation' chill.

Early on Friday, the arctic surge flowing into the United States from eastern Canada was centered over the US Plains, weather service forecaster Bob Oravec said. Kabetogama, Minnesota, near the Ontario border, was America's coldest spot at 1 pm EST, with a temperature of minus 39 F (-39.5 C).

Sub-freezing, blustery conditions spread eastward through the day, sending wind-chill factors - measuring the combined effect of wind and cold on the body - plunging into the -40s across much of Maine, NWS meteorologist Brian Hurley said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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