An unusually warm winter will bring severe thunderstorms to much of the country as the Western US is blanketed in heavy snow.
The Midwest and Great Lakes saw record-breaking warmth this week — but with temperatures rising and falling rapidly, severe thunderstorms, golf-ball-sized hail and tornadoes could hit the area in coming days, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).
Meanwhile, areas of ten states in the West are under winter storm warnings as of Tuesday. California could also see ten feet of snow in mountain areas later this week, according to the NWS.
Avalanche warnings are also in place for parts of Montana. Severe weather has already triggered avalanches this year — earlier this month, emergency crews had to rescue four people after an avalanche hit the Lee Canyon ski resort in Nevada. That same week, a skier in Wyoming was seriously injured after an avalanche carried her 1,500 feet.
These blizzard conditions could sow travel chaos throughout the country. In previous severe weather events, hundreds of flights were cancelled and road conditions became deadly. Last month, a severe winter storm across most of the country killed at least 89 people.