While here in the Southeast we have been experiencing an extremely warm winter, in the Pacific Northwest they are experiencing one of the coldest and wettest winters in at least 30 years. For younger folk born after 1985, it is the coldest winter they have ever experienced. Cliff Mass has produced a blog post which describes the conditions there and why they are occurring at https://cliffmass.blogspot.com/2017/03/the-coldest-winter-in-generation-for.html.
The result of these extreme conditions has been problems with transportation, which is an issue for agricultural producers in the area as well as in the Midwest. AgWeb has a story on how delayed rail shipments are affecting these farmers, who are having trouble getting out grain for export because rail transportation is so slow.
Another issue is with problems with highway closures. The Mercury News has a disturbing story about the isolation of the Big Sur community in northern California due to the destruction of bridges on Highway 1, their only exit out of the area. They are being forced to have food and supplies airlifted into the area, including feed for their animals. It may be a year before the bridges are repaired.
