A major winter storm slammed the southern US Tuesday, blanketing parts of the Gulf Coast with record-breaking snowfall in a region largely unaccustomed to extreme winter weather.

Snow and ice had ground road travel to a halt in some places and at least two people died in Texas. Many school districts had closed throughout a region unaccustomed to snow.

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.