Storms cancel thousands of flights in US

Winter weather continued to frustrate American fliers on Tuesday, with significant delays and cancellations reported in the Chicago and New York City regions. More than 40 people were killed in severe weather in the Southern and Midwestern parts of the United States during the Christmas holidays in the past week. Parts of eastern Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri and Illinois were under flood warnings and flood watches on Tuesday. Weather agencies say the extreme weather, which also caused flash floods in Oklahoma and blizzards in New Mexico, could continue to wreak havoc for the coming days. Adding to the misery, the US Geological Survey reported that two mild earthquakes - 4.1 and 3.4 magnitude - shook central Oklahoma on Tuesday, causing power outages in an area already hit by winter storms.