Coast to Coast, a brutal mix of snow, rain and bitter cold

Residents in Billings, Mont., woke up to temperatures of minus 25 degrees Fahrenheit. In Des Moines, homeowners were digging out snow from a blizzard and faced wind gusts of 45 miles per hour. Towns and cities along the east coast prepared for possible flooding from more rain. And communities near the Gulf Coast are preparing for a deep freeze.

More than 30 million Americans were under winter weather advisories on Saturday, from rain to high winds to heavy snow, according to the National Weather Service, with much of the United States expected to experience its coldest winter conditions yet.

Here's a look at what's going on, region by region.

Midwest

From Saturday morning Blizzard warnings were in effect covering most of Iowa, as well as North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.

Parts of Nebraska, Michigan, Indiana and Minnesota were under pressure winter storm warnings, with snow expected in many areas. More than 300,000 homes in the Great Lakes region were without power on Saturday morning. PowerOutage.us. And bitter wind chills were expected in Illinois and Missouri.

In Kansas City, where the defending Super Bowl champions the Chiefs will host the Miami Dolphins in a wild-card playoff game on Saturday night, temperatures will be “well below zero” at kickoff, forecasters said.

Northeast

Nearly two inches of rain have fallen in parts of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut since Friday, according to the Weather Service, with more rain expected in some areas on Saturday. Upton, NY, on Long Island, recorded 1.82 inches of rain, Newark recorded 0.91 inches and Central Park, in Manhattan, received 0.89 inches.

After the storm, hundreds of people were without power on Long Island, while thousands of outages were reported in parts of New Jersey.

Friday's rainfall – which lasted overnight – caused flooding in parts of New Jersey and led to evacuations of residents live near the Passaic River in Paterson and Little Falls.

Gov. Philip D. Murphy of New Jersey posted on Xthe platform formerly known as Twitter announced on Friday that the river was expected to rise another meter to sixty meters by Sunday afternoon due to heavy rain over the weekend.

Thousands of people in New England were also without power on Saturday as a third major storm passed through the area this week. Most of the disruptions were in Vermont, Rhode Island and New Hampshire, where strong winds of 50 km/h or more were forecast overnight.

The area was already saturated with heavy precipitation due to snow and rain, but flooding was also expected to occur. Coastal flooding advice and warnings were issued from Connecticut to Maine. Several rivers in Rhode Island, already flooding this weekgoods expected to experience More moderate flooding again as a result of Saturday's storm.

In Erie County, N.Y., which includes Buffalo, heavy snow and “very strong winds” were expected, Weather Service forecasters said, adding that snow totals could reach as much as 2 feet and blizzard conditions were possible on Saturday evening and Sunday.

West

Parts of Idaho, Wyoming, Oregon, Northern California, Colorado, Nevada, Utah and Alaska were under pressure winter storm warnings on Saturday morning, with snow expected in some areas.

The cold air moving across the United States is causing temperatures to drop in Montana, and readings of minus 40 or minus 50 were possible on Saturday. The cold air will move and is expected to hit the Central Plains on Sunday. Also flood advisories remained in force in areas of Montana on Saturday.

Another problem is ice. As another winter storm batters the West, the mountains will receive much-needed snow, but states like Oregon will also see significant freezing rain on Saturday.

south

A winter storm watch is in effect for many Tennessee counties Sunday through Tuesday morning, with temperatures also expected to rise Saturday evening plummet. Snow is expected Sunday evening through Tuesday, the weather service said.

In Texas, officials are preparing for temperatures well below freezing starting on Saturday evening. As cold air moves south through the remainder of the Martin Luther King birthday weekend, freezing temperatures will drop near the Gulf Coast. Along this leading edge, there is a chance of a wintry mix of freezing rain, sleet and sleet across eastern Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana from Sunday through Monday.

In Oklahoma, the weather service said that “dangerously cold chills” – as low as minus 25 degrees – were sometimes to be expected, especially at night and in the morning. Officials are urging residents to avoid outdoor activities.

The governors of Louisiana and Arkansas have declared states of emergency ahead of worsening conditions expected this weekend. “This is going to be a dangerous cold, so now is the time to prepare!” the weather service in Little Rock warned.

Ann Hinga Klein, Colleen Cronin, Lauryn Higgins And Joel Wolfram reporting contributed.