Heavy wave bad weather brought snow and frost to a large part of the on Sunday USAwith about 60 million residents in more than ten states—from Kansas to New Jersey—being alerted to follow the instructions of local authorities. A state of emergency has already been declared in Kansas, Kentucky, Arkansas, West Virginia and Virginia.

After initially hitting the central states, the storm is moving northeast, with the capital Washington bracing for heavy snow and bitter cold on Monday, when the US Congress meets to formally ratify the election of Donald Trump to the presidency.

The Republican speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, told the Fox News television network that the bad weather will not prevent members of Congress from carrying out their duties.

The US National Weather Service (NWS) reported blizzard conditions in Kansas and parts of northwest Missouri through Sunday afternoon. Roads were covered in snow and ice and authorities appealed to residents to avoid travel.

According to forecasters, the snow is expected to reach a height of 15 to 30 cm from southern Ohio to Washington. The NWS is warning of “dangerous ice accumulation” in northern Kentucky and southern West Virginia, as well as the possibility of tornadoes in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

Hundreds of flights were canceled at Kansas City and St. Louis airports due to the bad weather, according to the specialist website FlightAware.

Forecasters expect the storm to move away from the US East Coast into the Atlantic Ocean on Monday night, but an arctic cold wave will keep temperatures 5-10C below average for the season.