A state of emergency has been declared in Kentucky, Virginia, Kansas, Arkansas and Missouri and parts of the US unaccustomed to severe cold, including Mississippi and Florida, have been warned to expect treacherous conditions.
A total of 30 states have been put under a weather alert as the storm is expected to travel eastwards across the country.
Cities including Washington DC, Baltimore and Philadelphia are preparing for snowy and icy conditions from Sunday into Monday.
In some parts of the US where snow has been falling, officials are preparing for conditions to worsen.
By lunchtime local time, some schools had started to cancel Monday classes.
