Classes were canceled on Wednesday and Thursday for students in the Midwest, including Chicago, which has the third-largest school system in the nation. Police warned of the increased risk of accidents on icy highways. Michigan announced that all state offices would also remain closed through Thursday. The US Postal Service, in a rare move, suspended deliveries in parts of the Dakotas through Ohio. There have been at least a dozen deaths related to extreme cold weather reported since Saturday in Michigan, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Illinois State Police rescued 21 people who were stranded in a charter bus that broke down in sub-zero temperatures along Interstate 55 near Auburn after the vehicle's diesel fuel turned to gel in its engine. A 70-year-old man was discovered deceased on a residential street in Detroit, according to a Detroit police spokesperson. In Ecorse, located about 15 miles south, a former city councilman in his 70s was found dead on Wednesday, dressed only in sleepwear, as reported by local police. Also on Wednesday, a University of Iowa student was found dead outside a building on campus, with the school attributing the death of pre-med student Gerald Belz to the weather. Meanwhile, in Chicago, the streets were deserted and few people were seen outside due to the extremely cold temperatures of around 18 degrees below zero Fahrenheit (minus 28 Celsius). "It's awful!" Pasquale Cappellano, a 68-year-old waiter, exclaimed while smoking a cigarette and waiting for a bus on Chicago's North Side. "I need to get my medication from Walgreens or else I wouldn't have left the house." In Minneapolis, where the temperature dropped to minus 14 F (minus 26 C), Brian Pierce decided to brave the cold and found himself observing cars sliding on the icy roads. "The roads sound strange, it seems like there's a lack of traction," he commented. "My teeth are in pain." TRAVELING EAST Sub-zero wind-chill temperatures hit the Northern Plains and Great Lakes, dropping to as low as minus 42 F (minus 41 C) in Park Rapids, Minnesota, and minus 31 F (minus 35 C) in Fargo, North Dakota, as reported by the National Weather Service (NWS). The freezing winds moved towards the U.S. East Coast on Wednesday, causing temperatures to plummet. Over a thousand flights, almost two-thirds of the total, were canceled on Wednesday at Chicago O'Hare and Chicago Midway international airports, according to FlightAware. Amtrak also suspended all trains in and out of Chicago on Wednesday. Annie Carlson reported that her horses and sheep at Morning Joy Farm in Mercer, North Dakota were doing well, with the option to go into the barn for warmth. Her chickens, ducks, and guinea hens were also comfortable in the 70-degree F (21 C) temperature inside their hoop house. According to meteorologist Andrew Orrison, some of the most extreme wind chills were recorded in International Falls, Minnesota, reaching minus 55 F (minus 48 C). Even the South Pole in Antarctica experienced warmer temperatures than usual, with an expected low of minus 24 F (minus 31 C) with wind chill. Temperatures in Chicago are expected to drop significantly on Wednesday night, potentially breaking the record low of minus 27 F (minus 33 C) on Jan. 21, 1985. Banks and stores have closed for business, and Waste Management Inc has cancelled trash pickups in counties across the Midwest. The bitter cold is attributed to a displacement of the polar vortex, a stream of air that normally spins around the stratosphere over the North Pole but has been disrupted and is now pushing south. Authorities in the Midwest have established warming centers for individuals in need, including police stations in Chicago. In addition, city buses have been designated as mobile warming centers for the homeless, and police are distributing hats, jackets, and blankets. The Chicago Police Department is encouraging people to seek shelter from the cold, but they will not compel anyone to do so. Energy analysts predict that US homes and businesses will consume record levels of natural gas for heating on Wednesday. Xcel Energy requested that residents living north and northwest of the Twin Cities in Minnesota lower their thermostats to 60 F (16 C) due to strains on the natural gas supply system. The Michigan Agency for Energy announced that utility companies in the state had agreed not to disconnect gas or electric services for customers who were behind on payments for the remainder of the week. (Source: New York Times News Service, 2019)