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

Weather forecasters and public agencies issued health and power loss warnings Tuesday as a “rare winter storm" gripped parts of the southern and eastern United States."A bitterly cold airmass will remain in place for much of the South and eastern U.

Winter storm warnings remained in effect on Wednesday in eight states from Louisiana to Virginia. A blizzard warning was issued for the first time along parts of Louisiana's coast. Heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain were expected to continue Wednesday from Florida to North Carolina.