Record cold hits Northeast

(Image credit: Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

Several Eastern U.S. cities were hit by record cold on Sunday, followed by snow and sleet on Monday. The temperature fell to 1 below zero in New York City's Central Park, three degrees below the former record set during World War I. Bridgeport, Connecticut, also saw a record low of 1 below, shattering the previous low of 3 degrees Fahrenheit. Every state from Pennsylvania to Maine got wind chills under minus 15 during the Valentine's Day freeze, which affected the Plains and Midwest, as well. "These temperatures can be life threatening," New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.