'Extreme cold': Winter storm forecast to slam huge expanse of US

New York: A winter storm bringing very cold temperatures is expected to slam a massive stretch of the United States this week with more than 175 milli...

New York: A winter storm bringing very cold temperatures is expected to slam a massive stretch of the United States this week with more than 175 million people facing the prospect of power outages and travel disruptions.

Winter Storm Fern is forecast to engulf an area stretching from Texas and the Great Plains region to the mid-Atlantic and northeastern states. Forecasts warned it could be 2,000 miles (3,219 kilometers) long -- well over half the length of the continental US.

The storm's peak is expected to come Thursday and Friday, with Texas already having declared an emergency.

More than a foot of snow could be seen across the mid-Atlantic region, forecasters warned, with Virginia and Maryland likely to bear the brunt as arctic air locks in.

US weather channels were running apocalyptic predictions of "crippling ice," and a 1,500-mile (2,414-kilometer) "snow zone" liable to see record-breaking snowfall, while warning that freezing rain could damage power infrastructure and trees.