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.

Several cities in the southern U.S. are preparing for potentially record-breaking snow as millions of Americans face an artic blast, including the first-ever blizzard warning for parts of the Gulf Coast.