A rare and historic winter storm is wreaking havoc across the Gulf Coast, bringing dangerous blizzard conditions, record-breaking snowfall, and treacherous ice accumulation from eastern Texas through the Florida Panhandle.

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, including freezing rain and sleet

Around 40 million people, primarily across the southern U.S. from Texas to Florida, were under some type of weather hazard.