CALIFORNIA - Extreme weather is whipping the western half of the United States, bringing road-closing blizzards to California and critical fire conditions across Texas, where the state’s largest blaze burns away barely contained.

Heavy snow has already fallen, with more to come across California’s Sierra Nevada, where a section of Interstate 80 has been shut. Winds may gust up to 113kmh or more at higher altitudes, and there’s a chance of avalanches as blizzard conditions spread. 

More than 46,000 customers are without power across California, according to PowerOutage.us 

“They have had a lot of snowfall overnight and could get up to 5 to 12 feet as it continues through late tomorrow,” said forecaster William Churchill, from the US Weather Prediction Center. “So there is still plenty of snow still to come.”

Across the US, low pressure is bringing snow to California and other western states, and has set up conditions pumping high winds into the Texas Panhandle, where wildfires are raging out of control.

Dry winds across the US have raised the chances of wildfires across parts of Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas and Oklahoma through the weekend, threatening almost 4.5 million people on Saturday, the US Storm Prediction Center said. Flames in Texas have already destroyed upwards of 500 structures, Governor Greg Abbott has said.

The Smokehouse Creek fire has consumed more than 433,000 ha, making it the largest blaze in the state’s history, and it was only 15 per cent contained, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service. Flames have also spilled over into neighbouring Oklahoma, which is also battling wildfires.

Red flag fire warnings stretch from Texas to South Dakota across the Great Plains.

“This weather today could exacerbate the fires at this point,” Mr Churchill said. “Even new fires can pop up with conditions the way they are.” BLOOMBERG