This Weekend's Chilling Temperatures Turned Niagara Falls Into a Winter Wonderland
Jon Snow would’ve felt right at home in Niagara Falls this past weekend.
Winter Storm Harper, which brought snow, wind, sleet and freezing rain to parts of the Midwest and Northeast this weekend also caused Niagara Falls to pretty much stop in its tracks.
The result? An icy, wintry landscape that looks like it was practically plucked from Game of Thrones. In many places, the normally rushing waters of the falls were transformed into a hardened, ice wall, while the area around it, including rocks, fences, benches, and lampposts were blanketed in thick snow and ice.
Around the same time last year, the falls were also frozen solid due to extreme low temperatures.
Visitors to Niagara Falls shared the majestic, wintry scenes on social media. Despite the storm bringing dangerously freezing temperatures across the Northeast, people seem to be enjoying the view.
Good morning from #NiagaraFalls stay warm today???????? pic.twitter.com/RBJgaLGZJN
— Jim Assoun??????????????? (@jim_assoun) January 22, 2019
Falling in love with Niagara Falls?? pic.twitter.com/065786ZOB2
— Darci Lynne (@ItsDarciLynne) January 22, 2019
BREATHTAKING: Wanna know just how cold it is in the northeastern US right now? Parts of #NiagaraFalls are frozen solid!!! These shots are incredible #LiveDesk pic.twitter.com/N6TYqnz5U5
— Dan Snyder (@DanSnyderFOX25) January 22, 2019
As freezing temperatures continue, still waters at Niagara Falls leave visitors stunned by the majestic view
https://t.co/vi3w0N6yqC ...The frozen Niagara Falls! An amazing sight indeed.— Amit Paranjape (@aparanjape) January 22, 2019
It's so cold, parts of the usually rushing waters at Niagara Falls have frozen -- and visitors are stunned by the majestic views https://t.co/kjA1veNC4s pic.twitter.com/5TeNXNjuCl
— CNN (@CNN) January 22, 2019
A post shared by Inge Groot (@ingegroot) on Jan 21, 2019 at 12:52pm PST
A post shared by Inge Groot (@ingegroot) on Jan 21, 2019 at 12:37pm PST
One visitor, Emma Grafham, told CNN that she felt like she was in “Elsa’s castle” from the movie “Frozen.” “There was even this set of stairs that were placed just outside the look-on spot and they had so much ice on them, it looked like Elsa had just cast her arm out and summoned up some stairs like she does in the movie.”
Even though the beautiful snow and ice make for excellent Instagrams, its best to take every precaution to stay warm out there. According to CNN, Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo declared a state of emergency in Newport County after gas service was disrupted, leaving over 7,000 residents without heat in single-digit temperatures on Monday.
The winter storm and extreme cold has also resulted in several deaths in the Midwest, CNN reported.
More bitterly cold temperatures are expected for later this week and weekend in the Midwest and Northeast, according to Weather.com.