Forecasters warn of an impending polar vortex bringing even colder temperatures across parts of the United States.
Ice and snow have made travel dangerous across large portions of Michigan, which remains under a winter weather advisory. Michigan State Police reported 114 crashes in the Detroit area on Sunday after snowfall began on Saturday.
In Colorado, authorities said eight people had died in fatal vehicle crashes since Valentine’s Day, cautioning drivers about hazardous road conditions. The exact causes of the crashes were not immediately known, according to AP.
Additionally, three Colorado State Patrol cruisers parked along roadsides were struck by other vehicles, including one on Sunday when a trooper had stopped to assist with a road closure due to ice. In each incident, the troopers were outside their vehicles and were not injured.
Meteorologists said the US is bracing for its 10th and coldest polar vortex event of the season, with the northern Rockies and northern Plains expected to be affected first. Arctic weather patterns are forcing cold air, typically confined near the North Pole, to push into the U.S. and Europe.
The National Weather Service had previously warned of “life-threatening cold” in the northern Plains.
Avalanche warnings were in effect for multiple regions in the Rocky Mountains, from Colorado to Washington state, with the highest danger level reported in Utah.