Arctic weather gripped much of the country Monday with record lows as far south as Florida, making after-Christmas travel and shopping excursions an ordeal. Shelters were filled to capacity as homeless people sought relief from frigid conditions.
In Ohio's Geauga County, commissioners declared a snow emergency for Sunday and Monday as people struggled to dig out from under more than 30 inches that fell there over the weekend. All county offices were closed and residents were urged to stay off the roads.Record low temperatures Monday ranged from 30 below zero at Bismarck, N.D., to 9 below at Binghamton, N.Y., and 29 at Melbourne, Fla., on the Sunshine State's eastern coast. But closer to the North Pole, Nome, Alaska, warmed to a record high of 37 shortly after midnight, the National Weather Service said.
Temperatures in northern Maine fell to 17 below at Houlton and state troopers said trucks were halted because their diesel fuel turned to gel.
In Syracuse, N.Y., the wind was so fierce on Sunday that a plane preparing for take-off slid off the runway at Hancock International Airport, police said. There were no injuries or damage to the plane.
Detroit Metro Airport was the state's "hot spot" Sunday with a high of 12.