MORE than a million people were left without power in several states as a severe Arctic winter storm swept across the United States and Canada.
Low temperatures and winds brought by the storm in the U.S. and Canada can lead to frostbite on bare skin in just five to 10 minutes, experts have warned.
Authorities in much of Canada and the United States have issued warnings of winter weather that stretch escalating from the coast all the way to the U.S.-Mexico border.
Major airports have cancelled thousands of flights due to the storm, and as of Friday morning, more than 1,300,000 people from Texas to Maine were without power as strong winds damaged power lines across the eastern U.S.
Power outages have also been reported in Canada, affecting 284,000 people in quebec and ontario.
The U.S. National Weather Service said more than 200 million people - or roughly 60 percent of the U.S. population - are under some form of winter weather warning.
Much of Canada, from British Columbia to Newfoundland, is also under warnings of extreme cold and winter storms.
Several ontario school boards, including Toronto, have canceled classes.