For big parts of the United States, the past few days have brought lots of snow and lots of cold. Where there's snow and cold, there are slips, falls and ice-related injuries.
Authorities, first responders and medical professionals say that by following some common-sense rules, many of those problems can be reduced or avoided altogether.
From slowing down while driving on slick roads to imitating the slow, shuffling walk of penguins to never assuming lake ice is thick enough, changing behavior can keep people out of hospital emergency rooms.
“If there’s ice, there’s a risk,” said Dr. Robert Wahl, vice chief of Emergency Medicine at DMC Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital in Commerce Township, Michigan.
Southeastern Michigan, along with much of the eastern U.S., have been in a deep freeze for about a week as extreme cold followed by snowfall and plunging temperatures has left streets, driveways, parking lots and sidewalks hazardous.
Wahl says that when people tumble outdoors on ice, emergency rooms typically see three major groups of injuries: closed-head, outstretched hand and wrist injuries, and hip injuries.
Closed-head injuries really can be problematic, especially for the older adults, while outstretched hand injuries from trying to break a fall are painful, but most don’t require surgery, Wahl said.
“Broken hips. Those 100% need surgery,” he said.
Dr. Alexander Cotter of the Center for Spine and Orthopedics in Denver, advises adopting the “penguin protocol” of a small, shuffling gait while leaning forward to keep your center of gravity low.
“People all the time think that if you slip it's not going to be a big deal,” he said. “You're in a rush, looking at your phone and all of sudden you slide. If you're waddling, taking it slow you're going to be safer.”
Cotter specializes in physical medicine and rehabilitation, and pain management. When falling, he says people should try not to fall on their outstretched hands to avoid serious injuries to joints like elbows and rotator cuffs.
“Stay hands-free,” he said. “Think about tucking your chin down to protect your head. Leaning forward helps prevent the backwards fall. With forward falls, a lot of times you can take it on your shoulder.”
Wearing shoes or boots with tread and traction and limiting the amount of items you carry should be considered, too.
“Maybe not trying to be a superhero and taking everything (in) at one time,” Cotter said. “When you hurry, that's when you get injured. Be aware of what you're doing no matter what is going on. It’s common sense stuff and not the fault of any one person to not think of these things.”
Just prior to the current arctic blast, with daytime temperatures close to freezing and nighttime lows near or below zero degrees Fahrenheit (minus-17 Celsius), the Oakland County, Michigan, sheriff's office already was busy on a few of the county's 450 lakes.
The county borders Detroit to the north and northwest.
“Before the cold snap we had done six ice calls in nine days — people through the ice or animals through the ice,” Sheriff Mike Bouchard said Tuesday. “No ice should be considered safe just because we've had a few cold days or because you've measured in one spot.”
It's more about what you can't see, according to Bouchard.
“There are currents under the ice. There could be springs under the ice that melts it in one spot,” he said. “We've recovered two snowmobiles through the ice this year and saved two people out of a situation where they could have died.”
They've also seen animals perish. “We remind people if there's an animal on the ice, even a family pet, running out there doesn't help the pet and it certainly doesn't help you.”
Bouchard said that people walking, fishing or riding snowmobiles on the ice should measure the ice thickness in the area where they plan to be and not assume the thickness will be the same in all spots.
Take proper weather and safety equipment, he added.
“Have ice awls in your pocket to pull yourself out of the water,” he said. “When you're back on the ice, stay flat. You need to distribute your weight.”
When driving conditions deteriorate during a winter storm, it is important to take your time and not be in a rush, according to Kansas City Battalion Chief Riley Nolan.
“The main thing is for people to have patience,” Nolan said. “Leave in plenty of time, don't rush to anywhere you need to go.”
Nolan also suggests making sure you bring some rock salt, a small shovel, extra warm layers of clothing that cover your hands and face to keep yourself warm if your vehicle gets stuck in snow.
“If you do breakdown on the side of the road or have an incident, stay in your vehicle. Don't get out and wander away. Stay with your vehicle, stay warm,” Nolan said adding it is important that if you are stuck and staying warm by running your vehicle, to make sure your exhaust pipe is clear to avoid the fumes from harming you.
AAA-The Auto Club Group spokeswoman Adrienne Woodland said its also important for motorists to compensate for reduced tire traction and the distance between your vehicle and the one in front of you.
“You definitely do not want to tailgate on snowy and icy roads,” she said. “You want to allow sufficient room for maintenance vehicles. And with snow plows, stay at least 200 feet (60.9 meters) back from them.”
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Williams reported from Detroit. Ingram reported from Kansas City, Missouri.
Ice forms along the shore of Lake Michigan, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato)
A woman walks across the campus of the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss. on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, following a weekend ice storm. (AP Photo/Bruce Newman)
A man digs out his car on Beacon Hill following a winter storm that dump more than a foot of snow across the region, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Bill Belichick won six Lombardi Trophies as a head coach with the Patriots, two as an assistant with the Giants and has more Super Bowl rings than anyone in NFL history.
Yet somehow he’s not a first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer.
Belichick didn’t get the required votes in his first year of eligibility, according to a report from ESPN on Tuesday that cited four unidentified sources.
Belichick needed 40 votes from the 50-person panel of media members and other Hall of Famers.
News of the snub stunned players, coaches, fans and anyone who has watched football.
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes called it “insane.”
NBA superstar LeBron James said it’s “impossible, egregious, and quite frankly disrespectful.”
If Belichick’s resume isn’t worthy of a gold jacket and bronze statue, what constitutes a Hall of Fame career?
“Whatever perceptions may exist about any personal differences between Bill and me, I strongly believe Bill Belichick’s record and body of work speak for themselves," Patriots owner Robert Kraft said in a statement to The Associated Press on Wednesday.
"As head coach of the New England Patriots for more than two decades, he set the standard for on-field excellence, preparation, and sustained success in the free agency and salary cap era of the National Football League. He is the greatest coach of all time and he unequivocally deserves to be a unanimous first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer.”
Kraft and Belichick are two of five finalists among coaches, contributors and senior players who last appeared in a game in 2000 or earlier. Roger Craig, Ken Anderson and L.C. Greenwood are the players.
Between one and three of those finalists will be inducted into the Hall along with between three and five modern era players from a group of 15 finalists.
The Hall of Fame declined to comment before its class of 2026 is announced at NFL Honors in San Francisco on Feb. 5. Several voters immediately revealed they voted for Belichick and some called for those who didn’t to publicly say it.
Armando Salguero, OutKick’s Senior NFL Writer and Hall of Fame voter, was the one who presented Belichick in the Hall’s subcommittee meeting that selected him to advance to the full 50-member selection body. Salguero then presented Belichick to the full selector’s committee in a meeting on Jan. 13.
He is among the voters who selected Belichick and are urging the others to reveal themselves.
“They should identify themselves as the people who kept Belichick out of the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year,” Salguero wrote in his column. “I am saying that here, and would say as much to their face. Their votes sunk Belichick’s chances and embarrassed the Hall of Fame in the process.
“They make all selectors look bad, and they shouldn’t hide behind their minority vote to protect themselves at the expense of the wider group. I know it’s a wider group because I’ve spoken with a lot of selectors since our meeting, and they agreed with my vote for Belichick.”
Salguero, who is a longtime voter for the AP All-Pro team and the AP NFL awards, said the “Spygate” scandal kept Belichick out of the Hall. There is no morality or character criteria for voters to consider.
Belichick was implicated in a sign-stealing scheme during the 2007 season and was fined $500,000 after New England was caught filming defensive signals from the New York Jets during a game.
“Spygate was the reason several selectors could not bring themselves to vote for Belichick, because they felt it sullied his records,” Salguero wrote.
In his presentation, Salguero said he pointed out that Belichick had a higher winning percentage (.693 to .580) after “Spygate” and won three Super Bowls and six conference titles. He had 14 double-digit win seasons and won more regular-season games after “Spygate” than 22 of the 28 coaches in the Hall of Fame.
“Those facts may have changed some minds on Belichick. But it didn’t change enough of them,” Salguero wrote.
The process for selection changed in 2025. The 50 voters now each pick three of the five and between one to three make it if they get at least 40 votes. A new rule also made coaches eligible one year after retiring instead of five.
Belichick sat out one season after his 24-year tenure with the Patriots ended in 2023. He just finished his first year coaching in college at North Carolina, where he went 4-8.
Belichick has not commented publicly on the reported vote outcome. UNC executive associate athletic director Steve Newmark — a former NASCAR executive who is designated to take over as the school’s AD later this year — posted a statement on X expressing support for Belichick.
“It’s hard to imagine a scenario where Bill Belichick is not a first-ballot selection to the Pro Football Hall of Fame,” Newmark said in the post. “The greatest coaching resume in NFL history speaks for itself, and we are fortunate to have Coach Belichick leading our team.”
Mike Sando, an NFL writer for The Athletic, said he voted for Belichick and explained the process that could’ve led to the snub.
“Whatever the case, I would see this as a repudiation of the new voting rules implemented for 2025, not of Belichick or any candidate not making it,” Sando wrote on X.
The 73-year-old Belichick was a top defensive assistant coach with Giants under Bill Parcells. He left New York to coach Cleveland from 1991-95, joined the Patriots as an assistant in 1996, spent three seasons with the Jets and was hired by New England in 2000.
He led the Patriots with Tom Brady to six Super Bowl wins in nine appearances and had one 16-0 regular season. Belichick’s 333 wins in the regular season and playoffs with New England and Cleveland are the second most to Don Shula’s 347. He won AP NFL Coach of the Year three times.
“Just for the record: I voted for Belichick and am stunned — and embarrassed for our selection committee,” USA Today NFL columnist Jarrett Bell wrote on X. “At least 11 people from the 50-member panel voted against BB. At the very least they should reveal themselves as this begs for transparency. Don’t lump us all together.”
AP Pro Football Writer Josh Dubow and AP Sports Writers Aaron Beard and Kyle Hightower contributed.
FILE - North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick walks on the field before an NCAA college football game against Syracuse, Oct. 31, 2025, in Syracuse, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus, File)
FILE - New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick holds up the Vince Lombardi Trophy as he celebrates the Patriots' victory over the Seattle Seahawks in NFL Super Bowl XLIX football game Feb. 1, 2015, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
