Big Freeze Grips US, Chilling Iowa Caucus Campaigning

Des Moines, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Jan, 2024) A big freeze gripped swathes of the United States on Friday, jamming transport and dumping heavy snow across the north, including in Iowa where Republican Party presidential hopefuls are in the final stretches of caucus campaigning.

Forecasters warned "dangerously cold Arctic air" and blizzards would affect millions of people in the north, with temperatures to plunge as low as -40 Fahrenheit (-40 C), with windchill making it feel even colder in some places.

The extreme weather was making life difficult for White House hopeful Ron DeSantis and his rival Nikki Haley, who both canceled events just days before the Iowa caucus vote -- the first of the 2024 White House race.

"We want everyone to be safe," DeSantis told reporters outside his Des Moines headquarters.

"We've had to rearrange the schedule but we're working hard."

Haley implored Iowans not to let the brutal cold prevent them from voting on Monday in the first statewide test of who will take on the party's presidential mantle.

"I know it's going to be negative 15 on Monday. I don't even know what that is. I literally can't comprehend it... But I'm going to be out there and I want you to go out there," Haley said Thursday.

Despite a quickening competition between the two, both trail former president Donald Trump by a huge margin in the race for the Republican Party nomination.

Several inches (centimeters) of snow were expected across Iowa throughout Friday, with the National Weather Service warning of dangerous conditions on the roads.

"Travel may become impossible in rural areas by this afternoon. Hazardous travel to continue through Saturday across much of central Iowa," the NWS said.

"Dangerous cold temperatures will accompany this storm, adding an extra layer of risk to travel."