Around 40 million people in the U.S. are under a winter storm warning from an unusual blast of severe cold weather and snow across the South.

Residents across parts of the Gulf Coast and South are bracing for a rare winter storm expected to drop heavy snow and create treacherous conditions.

A historic winter storm swept across the Gulf Coast on Tuesday, bringing heavy snow and icy conditions to the Southeast while most of the country was facing dangerously cold temperatures from an arctic blast that arrived over the weekend.