ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Much of Alaska has plunged into a deep freeze, with temperatures well below zero. Anchorage has seen some of its coldest temperatures in years and the mayor opened warming facilities for people who are homeless or don’t have reliable heating.
To the south in the state capital, Juneau, snow blanketed streets and rooftops as part of a two-day storm that helped set a new January snowfall record of 6.4 feet (2 meters) for the city, which is nestled in a relatively temperate rainforest. That’s after back-to-back storms walloped Juneau earlier in the month.
Anchorage surpassed 100 inches (2.5 meters) of snow this week, the earliest date the state’s largest city has ever hit that mark.HOW COLD IS IT?
For much of the last week, temperatures were minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 40 Celsius) or colder in Fairbanks, an inland city of about 32,000 that’s a popular destination for seeing the northern lights. In other far-flung towns, the thermometer hovered between minus 30 Fahrenheit (minus 34.4 Celsius) and minus 20 Fahrenheit (minus 28.9 Celsius) for days.