Millions of people across the northern Gulf Coast braced Tuesday for a rare winter storm that’s expected to scatter heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain around the Deep South as a blast of Arctic air plunges much of the eastern U.S. into a deep freeze.

A rare and potentially historic winter storm is bringing heavy snow to Texas and the Gulf Coast while nearly 220 million people across 40 states are facing dangerously cold temperatures from an arctic blast that arrived over the weekend.