Magnitude 3.8 Earthquake Rattle Buffalo While Severe Thunderstorms Form Over Texas, Power Outage Continues

Locals in Buffalo were alarmed by a magnitude 3.8 earthquake, and severe thunderstorms are forecast for Texas, making the continuing power outage more challenging.

Severe Thunderstorms, Flooding in Texas

Only a few days after the state was pummeled by a brutal ice storm that froze roadways and cost the lives of at least seven people, parts of the Rockies and the West will likely receive snow, and possibly severe thunderstorms will start to form in Texas.

AccuWeather senior meteorologist Adam Douty said that late on Monday and early on Tuesday, a storm will intensify over Texas, bringing with it more severe thunderstorms and rain.

Tuesday morning, thunderstorms in the eastern region of the state may start, and by Tuesday noon, severe thunderstorms are predicted. Through Tuesday night, Austin, Houston, Tyler, San Antonio, and Waco are among the areas and cities that face a risk of severe weather.

According to AccuWeather, severe thunderstorms carry the risk of dangerous lightning as well as damaging wind gusts reaching 50 mph to 60 mph. Furthermore, it's not impossible that a few lone tornadoes could occur in the area.

On Wednesday, the storm is predicted to head northeast toward Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, and Arkansas. As a result, throughout the week, flood warnings are in effect for several places adjacent to rivers in the affected states, according to National Weather Service.

Texas, Arkansas Power Outage

As of Sunday night, thousands of residents in Texas were still without power as the state braces itself for more severe weather.

After an icy winter storm moved through the region last week, over 32,000 homes and business establishments in eastern Texas were still without power as of Monday morning, according to Tallahassee Democrat. Most of the outages were reported in Travis County, the same area where Austin is found.

More than 13,000 homes and business establishments without power are reported in Arkansas's southern region, where there are also reported outages.

Snow

Winter weather warnings are in effect for some areas of the West as well as the Rocky Mountains through Monday morning; Salt Lake City may receive 5 inches to 10 inches of snow.

Alan Reppert, an AccuWeather meteorologist, said that spotty snow will fall over the Rockies and move toward the northern plains, and yet later in the week snowfall may be seen in the Midwest as well as in areas close to the Great Lakes.

Warm Temps, Majority of US

The polar vortex that introduced freezing and, in some areas, record-breaking temperatures to much of the US is starting to warm up. According to the National Weather Service, temperatures are now predicted to be above average for early February in the East, with some regions experiencing temperatures 20 to 30 degrees above average.

Reppert told USA TODAY that the majority of the country will experience seasonal or even warmer-than-average weather.

Magnitude 3.8 Earthquake, Buffalo

According to the US Geological Survey, a Monday morning earthquake with a magnitude of 3.8 woke up locals in the Buffalo, New York, area. USGS said that the epicenter of the earthquake was close to West Seneca, a Buffalo suburb that borders the city towards the southeast.