US grid operator asks households to cut electricity use amid difficulties in dangerous winter storm Elliott

Louise Boyle
·2 min read
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US grid operator asks households to cut electricity use amid difficulties in dangerous winter storm Elliott

A major grid operator in the United States is asking customers to reduce electricity use as power plants struggled in the brutal, subzero conditions of Winter Storm Elliott.

Pennsylvania-based PJM Interconnection, which serves 65 million people, asked the public to cut back until the morning of 25th December as frigid temperatures, heavy snow and howling winds continue to sweep the country.

Households were being asked to lower thermostats, postpone using major appliances and turn off non-essential lights and appliances.

Follow the latest updates on Winter Storm Elliott on The Independent’s live blog.

At least 12 people were killed in multiple vehicle collisions during the perilous winter storm as thousands were left stranded at airports on Christmas Eve and power outages rippled across regions.

Four people died in a 46-vehicle pile-up in whiteout conditions on the Ohio Turnpike on Friday, officials said. Other fatalities were confirmed in Kentucky, Oklahoma and Kansas.

Four people died in a 46-vehicle pileup on the Ohio turnpike on Friday in freezing, whiteout conditions (Ohio State Highway Patrol)
Four people died in a 46-vehicle pileup on the Ohio turnpike on Friday in freezing, whiteout conditions (Ohio State Highway Patrol)

More than 1.6 million customers are without power across the US with nearly half a million homes impacted in North Carolina. Tens of thousands are also in blackout in Tennessee, Maine, Alabama, and New York. Officials in Texas rushed to reassure households that its standalone grid would hold up after it collapsed during a brutal freeze in February 2021 and 200 people died.

Around 5,700 US flights were cancelled on Friday as blizzards, whiteouts, icy rain and freezing, powerful winds stretched from the Canadian border to the Rio Grande.

Around 1,000 flights were canceled on Saturday, according to tracking website FlightAware’s “Misery Map”. Airports in New York, Atlanta and Denver were among the most heavily impacted. In Chicago, 500 flight cancellations had left travellers sleeping in terminals. Only one runway was open at Seattle-Tacoma airport in Washington leading to heavy delays while Buffalo Airport in New York was shut until Monday.

Amtrak trains has also canceled services throughout the Christmas period. In the midwest, multi-vehicle collisions in whiteout conditions have led to fatalities. Public officials are urging drivers to reconsider travel plans due to the dangers and lengthy delays.

More than 200 million people are facing subzero temperatures – in some places as low as -40C. This will be accompanied by dangerous winds, and blinding, heavy snowfall at a time when many families were planning a return to a somewhat normal festive season after several years of pandemic restrictions and worries.

The National Weather Service described it as “one of the greatest extents of winter weather warnings and advisories ever”.