US braves brutal cold

New York: Much of the US East Coast woke up on Saturday to brutally cold and dangerous temperatures as the region recovers from a powerful blizzard that unleashed heavy snows and strong winds.

From northern Florida up through New York City into New England, tens of millions of people will be under wind chill and freeze warnings throughout the day as temperatures in some parts to the north were expected to be minus 40 degrees Celsius, while in parts of the south highs were forecast to be 20 degrees below average. "It can be very dangerous," said Dan Pydynowski, a meteorologist with private forecasting service AccuWeather. "Any kind of exposed skin can freeze in a couple of minutes."

The cold snap comes as workers clear snow and ice from roadways after a blizzard clobbered the region on Thursday and Friday, forcing hundreds of schools to close, major airports to shut down because of whiteout conditions and several commuter rail services to suspend or reduce service.

The region's first snow storm of 2018 featured gusts of more than 113kmph, dumping 56cm of snow in parts of Maine and 43cm in parts of Massachusetts. Reuters