Record low temperatures and extreme winds hit the northeastern United States this weekend – including New Hampshire, where a new wind chill record has been set for the U.S.
Meteorologists recorded a 108 degrees below zero wind chill Saturday morning at the Mount Washington Observatory. The summit’s actual temperature dropped to minus 47 degrees, the lowest since 1943, and wind speeds topped 120 miles per hour.
Meteorologist Francis Tarasiewicz said there was zero visibility at the site and that one of the door hinges that keeps the observatory closed broke at one point during the night, bringing some level of fear to the people inside.
Tarasiewicz had a small opening between his wrist and his glove; the cold was so terrible that it felt like a bee sting, he said.
“There was definitely fear and excitement,” he said.
To prevent fatalities, state and local officials made an additional 350 shelter beds available for unhoused people this weekend since many shelters are often at capacity.
