01:57 How One Couple Visited All 61 U.S. National Parks in Seven Months Steven and Lauren Keys decided to take on a seven-month adventure: Visit all 61 National Parks and spend as little money as possible. For more on the trip, visit their website: tripofalifestyle.com

At a Glance Nearly 5 feet of snow fell in some areas, including 58 inches in Vermont.

Officials have confirmed at least 16 deaths from the storm.

Winter Storm Stella has moved out of the Northeast after dumping 3 to nearly 5 feet of snow in some areas, paralyzing several major cities, knocking out power out to half a million and crippling air travel for thousands.

A new top snow total was reported Thursday morning: The Bolton Valley Ski Area in the Green Mountains of northern Vermont east of Burlington reported a storm total of 58 inches of snow.

The powerful storm killed at least 16 people, grounded more than 6,000 flights and shut down several major cities, including New York City and Boston.

Airlines were working to return to normal operations Thursday.

Sixteen deaths have been attributed to the storm:

A 10-year-old boy died in Pendleton, New York , Wednesday after he became trapped in a pile of snow against a building, WIVB reports. The child was reportedly digging a tunnel into the pile when it collapsed on him.

Three people died in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania , Wednesday, County Coroner Dr. David J. Moylan III told the Republican Herald. The deaths include two men in Ringtown and an 83-year-old woman in Wayne Township. All three died of apparent heart attacks while shoveling snow.

A 23-year-old man was killed Wednesday in a crash on the ice- and snow-covered Interstate 78 in Upper Bern Township, Pennsylvania, according to the Associated Press.

A 47-year-old man died of a heart attack Tuesday while shoveling snow at his parents' home on Staten Island, reports WABC.

A man died of heart attack Tuesday after removing snow at his home in the Town of Newburgh, NY, police confirmed.

A 16-year-old was killed in New Hampshire Tuesday morning after crashing on a snowy roadway. According to AP, she was the daughter of a police department dispatcher.

In Longmeadow, Massachusetts, a Department of Public Works employee died Tuesday after the truck he was driving was struck by a plow train.

In East Hartford, Connecticut, an elderly man died after being struck by a snowplow Tuesday afternoon, police said.

In Canada, a driver of a tractor-trailer died Tuesday from injuries sustained in a multi-vehicle pileup Tuesday in southern Ontario.

The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner told CBS 58 that a 68-year-old man collapsed and died while shoveling snow in South Milwaukee on Monday.

A 76-year-old man on Milwaukee's north side collapsed and died Monday while removing snow.

A 78-year-old man died on the North side of Milwaukee, also after shoveling.

A 64-year-old man collapsed on Park Avenue in South Milwaukee and died.

Another Southside Milwaukee man died after snow blowing. He was 76.

New York

Top Snow Total: 42 inches, West Winfield

The storm prompted Gov. Andrew Cuomo to declare a state of emergency Tuesday for all of New York's 62 counties, including New York City. He also directed non-essential state employees to stay home from work, reports the AP.

Wednesday he announced that he is sending 100 large plows and 100 members of the National Guard to assist in snow removal in the state's southern tier region.

The storm grounded more than 3,000 in the New York City area alone, stranding hundreds of passengers, and nearly all New York City mass transit systems had delays, suspensions and cancellations. Most returned to normal by Wednesday morning, although the Metro-North Railroad continues to operate on a modified schedule into and out of New York's Grand Central Terminal Wednesday as it recovers from the snowstorm, the AP reports.

Two homes under construction near the beach in the Far Rockaway section of Queens collapsed during the storm. No injuries were reported, the fire department told the AP.

<img class="styles__noscript__2rw2y" src="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/ap_17073740384061.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0" srcset="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/ap_17073740384061.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 400w, https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/ap_17073740384061.jpg?v=ap&w=980&h=551&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 800w" > Cherie Burke contends with blowing snow during a blustery storm, Tuesday, March 14, 2017, in Portland, Maine. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

New Jersey

Top Snow Total: 20.3 inches, Vernon

Gov. Chris Christie declared a state of emergency Monday ahead of the storm. With plunging temperatures threatening to freeze roadways on Wednesday, Christie said he wanted the state to be prepared for the worst.

“I want the storm to be completely out of here before we lift the state of emergency,” Christie said.

(WATCH: Car Erupts in Flames in Snowstorm )

Roughly 1,000 homes and businesses remained without power Wednesday night, according to AP.

Parts of Atlantic City and other towns in southern New Jersey experienced significant tidal flooding. The tide reached 7.8 feet in Atlantic City Tuesday morning, just shy of the 8-foot threshold that can lead to major flooding. Route 322 in West Atlantic City was shut down, as were some smaller streets around the area, AP also reports.

A couple of wind gusts were clocked at 62 mph on the Jersey Shore, according to weather.com meteorologist Chris Dolce.

(MORE: What to Know About Stella )

Pennsylvania

Top Snow Total: 34.5 inches, Oakland

Icy conditions Wednesday caused a vehicle to slip off Route 1 near Creek Road and slam into a snow bank in Chads Ford Wednesday. Two people were injured, reports the AP.

On Tuesday, a 23-month-old child in need of a heart transplant was escorted on an 80-mile trip from East Stroudsburg to Danville by state snowplows and troopers through the storm, the governor said.

Several avalanches were reported, including one that shut down Route 92 in Wyoming County, according to emergency management.

Massachusetts

Top Snow Total: 21.5 inches, Granville

A day after the storm, about 19,000 National Grid customers in Massachusetts remain without power, reports the AP.

Around 40 percent of departures and 17 percent of arrivals were canceled at Bradley International Airport as of 6:30 a.m. Wednesday, according to masslive.com.

"Passengers should check with their airline on their individual flight itineraries and rebooking options," airport officials said in a statement.

<img class="styles__noscript__2rw2y" src="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/ap_17073646792450_0.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0" srcset="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/ap_17073646792450_0.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 400w, https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/ap_17073646792450_0.jpg?v=ap&w=980&h=551&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 800w" > Waves from the Atlantic Ocean pound into the seawall near high tide during a winter storm in Scituate, Massachusetts, Tuesday, March 14, 2017. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia) (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)

In Hingham, a family of four was displaced after a tree fell and smashed through the roof of their house, according to CBS Boston. No one was hurt in the incident.

In Longmeadow, a Department of Public Works employee died after the truck he was driving was struck by an Amtrak plow train , 22News reported. Longmeadow Town Manager Stephen Crane told 22News the employee was clearing the road leading up to the tracks when the crash occurred.

Connecticut

Top Snow Total: 21 inches, Middletown

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy lfted a statewide travel ban in the state Tuesday afternoon, according to CBS New York. He said state agencies would re-open for business Wednesday and credited the travel ban with helping crews remove snow on state roads.

The governor also said there were 38 wrecks during the road travel ban.

Hundreds of school districts are closed in the state or opening late Wednesday, according to NBC Connecticut .

Virginia

Top Snow Total: 8.1 inches, Winchester

Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller told the AP troopers responded to at least 150 crashes and disabled vehicles statewide. She says many of them were in northern Virginia. No serious injuries were reported.

Dominion Power reported more than 41,000 customers without power around the state, including more than 36,000 in the Richmond area.

<img class="styles__noscript__2rw2y" src="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/ap_17073720792038.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0" srcset="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/ap_17073720792038.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 400w, https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/ap_17073720792038.jpg?v=ap&w=980&h=551&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 800w" > People walk beneath snow-covered trees on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall during a winter storm Tuesday, March 14, 2017, in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer) Rhode Island

Top Snow Total: 13 inches, Burrillville

About 8,500 National Grid customers found themselves without power Tuesday, and schools were closed throughout the state, reports the AP.

No one was hurt when high winds knocked over a state-owned wind turbine at a Narragansett beach.

Maryland

Top Snow Total: 11 inches, Sabillasville

Maryland State Police said troopers responded to 101 crashes, none serious.

(MORE: Stunning Ice on Lake Superior )

At the height of the storm, more than 20,000 homes were without power .

Midwest

Before targeting the East, Stella wreaked havoc in the Midwest, killing two and causing hundreds of wrecks.

Nearly 70 vehicles were involved in collisions on Interstate 41 in Washington County Monday, WISN.com reports. There were five or six crashes in the southbound lanes, one of which involved 46 cars. Minor injuries were reported.

Wisconsin officials also said 12 cars and five tractor-trailers were involved in a pileup Monday that occurred in the northbound lanes of I-43, WBAY.com reported. Three people had minor injuries, but no deaths were reported. The interstate was shut down between Highways 42 and 23 after the crash.

In Minnesota, more than 400 crashes were reported Sunday, one of which was a pileup that shut down Interstate 694 in Fridley.

In Iowa, snow-covered highways caused dozens of accidents in multiple counties, but no deaths were reported, according to the Associated Press.

More than 1.1 million Michigan DTE Energy customers lost power at the height of the storm.

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: Photos of Winter Storm Stella </s> The death toll from violent rainstorms battering Italy has risen to nine, officials said Tuesday.

Most of the country’s northern region remains under a red alert after catastrophic rains and severe winds pounded much of the country, resulting in downed trees, tidal flooding, and thousands left without power.

Venice has been inundated by floodwaters — the worst seen in the Italian city for at least a decade.

On Monday, the water rose to more than five feet above sea level at high tide, bringing three-quarters of the canal city under water.

“The exceptional wave of bad weather leaves us with a dramatic toll: nine dead, four serious injuries and one person missing,” said Italy’s Interior Minister Matteo Salvini.

The national fire brigade said it had intervened in 7,000 cases across the country and that one of its members died after being crushed by a tree during a rescue operation in a small town in the northeast Italian province of South Tyrol.

Authorities said Tuesday that a woman died in the north region of Trentino when her home was overcome by a mudslide and that a man was killed by a falling tree in the northeastern region of Veneto.

Two young people died in the south of Rome when a tree hit their car, and another person was killed in the nearby town of Terracina as winds brought down throngs of pine trees, according to CNN.

Among the victims, according to the news outlet, was a 21-year-old man who was struck by a falling tree while walking in Naples and a woman who died after being hit by debris blown off a building in the northern region of Liguria.

A man was also killed Monday while kite-surfing near the town of Cattolica on the Adriatic coast.

According to Italian media, nearly 200 people, tourists and hotel staff were stranded by heavy snowfall at Stelvio Pass, a mountain pass in northern Italy bordering Switzerland.

The weather was expected to improve Tuesday, “giving the country a truce,” according to an official from Italy’s Civil Protection Service.

Meanwhile, heavy snowfall in France has caused travel chaos and left hundreds of motorists stranded as winter arrived early on Monday.

Nearly 200,000 homes remained without power across the country Tuesday after snowstorms struck central regions Monday evening. </s> 01:31 The Winter of 2018-19 One to Remember Meteorologist Ari Sarsalari looks back at some of the worst of the winter weather.

At a Glance A NYC doorman died while shoveling snow.

Snow emergencies were declared in Boston and Philadelphia.

Nearly 4,000 flights were canceled because of the storm. A New York City doorman died while shoveling snow as Winter Storm Niko brought blizzard conditions and rapid snow accumulation to the region.

Thursday, 59-year-old Miguel Gonzalez died while shoveling snow on the Upper East Side of New York , CBS New York reports. Authorities say the doorman slipped and crashed through a plate glass window around 9:30 a.m. He was taken to Metropolitan Hospital with injuries to the neck and face and was later pronounced dead.

Snow emergencies were declared in two major Northeast metro areas, Philadelphia and Boston, as the rapidly strengthening storm blanketed the Northeast with up to 2 feet of snow in places. Thundersnow was also reported at several locations around the region.

(LOCAL IMPACTS: Boston | New York | Philadelphia )

Governors in Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, as well as New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio urged people to stay off the roads Thursday, the Associated Press reports, to keep them clear for plows and emergency vehicles. Despite the warnings, the rapid accumulation of snow caught many drivers out in the open.

"It's pretty nuts here," Felecia White told the Associated Press as she and friends hunkered down in a restaurant in Newport, Rhode Island, waiting for the weather to improve. "Even with four-wheel drive, you can't do anything. You can't see across the street."

Connecticut State Police responded to more than 600 calls during the storm, including 68 accidents with four injuries and several jackknifed semi trucks that closed stretches of Interstate 95. New Jersey State Police reduced speed limits to 35 mph along the 122-mile length of the New Jersey Turnpike but still fielded more 600 calls for assistance.

In New York, dozens of motorists were stranded on Long Island after they couldn't make it up icy ramps, and scores of others were around the NYC Metro area, the Associated Press reports. New York Gov. Mario Cuomo himself stopped to give aid to a driver stuck in a snowbank in Westchester County, helping to attach tow cables from his security detail's SUV onto the man's car.

Nearly 4,000 flights were canceled nationwide because of the storm as of Thursday, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware.com. The cancellations include at least 380 flights going in and out of LaGuardia and 376 flights at Newark. Boston Logan International saw 351 cancellations.

Numerous cities closed schools on Thursday ahead of the storm, and schools in Boston, Hartford, Connecticut and Waterbury Connecticut announced they would remain closed on Friday as well.

Here are some of the top snow totals from the storm: Connecticut: 19.0 inches in East Hartford; 18.0 inches in Suffield; 18.0 inches in Bloomfield; 17.5 in Winsted; 16.8 inches in Somers; 14.3 inches in West Hartford; 10.3 inches in Bridgeport

Maine: 24.0 inches near Cooper; 20.0 inches in Perry; 16.8 inches near Berwick; 15 inches near Winter Harbor; 11.0 inches in Wells; 8.0 inches in South Portland

Massachusetts: 19.0 inches in East Longmeadow; 18.0 inches in Ludlow; 17 inches in Westfield; 16.0 inches in Springfield; 12.9 inches in Worcester; 10.7 inches in Boston/Logan Airport;

New Hampshire: 17.0 inches in Nottingham; 16.5 inches in Merrimack; 15.0 inches in Litchfield; 8.0 inches in Concord

New Jersey: 11.3 inches in West Milford; 11.1 inches in Highland Lakes; 10.3 inches in Wantage; 10.2 inches near Montague; 7.8 inches in Newark

New York: 16.3 inches in Gilderland; 14.4 inches in Farmington; 13.7 inches at Islip Airport; 13.5 inches in Eastport; 12.8 inches near Albany; 10.6 inches at Islip; 10 inches at La Guardia Airport; 9.4 inches in Central Park; 8.3 inches at JFK Airport (NYC)

Pennsylvania: 11.0 inches in Flinton and near Champion; 10.8 inches in Clarks Summit; 7.1 inches in Allentown

Rhode Island: 14.5 inches in North Foster; East Providence: 11.9 inches; 10.9 inches in Providence

Vermont: 9.0 inches in Woodford; 8.2 inches in Manchester; 8.0 inches in Putney </s> Image copyright Off-Road Adventures/via REUTERS Image caption A snow storm struck the US south-eastern states over the weekend

A heavy snowstorm has swept through US south-eastern states, killing at least three people and leaving hundreds of thousands without power.

A state of emergency has been declared in North Carolina, with some areas reporting as much as 0.5m (18.5ins) of snow over the weekend.

One man died after a tree fell on his car. A search is under way for a driver whose vehicle was found in a river.

Thousands of flights were also cancelled across the region.

Image copyright Twitter/Bryce Sigmon/via REUTERS Image caption A boathouse in North Carolina destroyed by the storm

'A dangerous system'

Snow, sleet and freezing rain continues to impact the South.

At a news conference on Monday, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said "a year's worth of snowfall fell in some places in a day".

More than 300,000 people were affected by electricity outages in the Carolinas, Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia on Sunday, while storm warnings remained in place in the south-east "especially North Carolina and Virginia", the National Weather Service (NWS) said in a tweet.

The storm was expected to move off the coast on Monday, although the NWS's lead forecaster Michael Schichtel warned it would continue to be "a dangerous system".

"It's slow to move off the Carolinas but a saving grace is that it won't hit New England," he told Reuters news agency.

Image copyright Rod Wilbourn/via REUTERS Image caption Snow hits a porch in Banner Elk, North Carolina

In some areas, so much snow fell the weight brought power lines crashing down.

But the main danger appeared to be on the roads.

Almost 60 crashes were reported in Virginia, state police told local media, with the number rising to 672 in North Carolina as of Monday morning.

NWS officials warned of black ice forming on roads on Monday and into Tuesday.

Gov Cooper emphasised that the roads could "turn into ice rinks" even as the storm passes.

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Hundreds of road accidents were reported

On Monday, the governor confirmed three storm-related deaths, saying the snow "turned into a nightmare and tragedy".

A man was killed in a suburb of Charlotte when a tree fell on his car. A second person was taken to hospital following the accident, WRAL.com said.

A woman receiving hospice care in the western part of the state also died during the storm.

Near Winston-Salem, another individual died of a heart condition on the way to a shelter, according to the governor's office.

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption A snow storm struck the US south-eastern states over the weekend

Gov Cooper urged residents to check on their loved ones and neighbours, particularly senior citizens.

The North Carolina National Guard remains active. The troops rescued 20 people in Wilkesboro, Brig Gen Todd Hunt said at the news conference, and continue to assist with road clearing and traffic accidents.

Several hundred miles east, in Kinston, divers were searching for another driver, whose tractor-trailer apparently crashed into the Neuse River.

Officials were alerted after debris was spotted on a bridge over the river, ABC12 said. </s> LONDON
• A powerful winter storm battered Europe yesterday, killing one woman and leaving 330,000 homes without power in France as flights and train services were cancelled and coastal areas put on flood alert.

Britain issued nearly a dozen severe flood warnings, meaning there was a risk of severe flooding and danger to life, and urged thousands of people to evacuate their homes in several seaside communities.

The storm, named Egon, also battered Belgium and Germany, where the key international hub of Frankfurt airport cancelled 120 flights, according to German media.

Eurostar cancelled two trains between London and Paris, while 180 passengers were forced to spend a chilly night on a high-speed Thalys train from Brussels to the French capital that finally arrived 10 hours late.

"We stopped on the tracks at around 9pm," said Mr Eduardo Soteras, a passenger on the train.

"At first we had electricity, but then it (was) cut. We found ourselves in the dark without heating."

In France, a woman was killed by a falling tree in her garden in a village near the Mediterranean resort of Nice, while another woman in Albania was found dead on Thursday outside her home in the southern town of Saranda.

"She died in front of her children. Her husband immediately tried to help by cutting the tree, but it was too late," a French police official said of the death there.

Winds of up to 146kmh hit France's Channel port of Dieppe overnight, while parts of Germany were bracing for up to 30cm of snow yesterday.

Since the end of last week, a winter cold snap across Europe has killed more than 60 people, with homeless people and migrants stranded in countries such as Greece and Serbia most at risk.

Separately, an ice storm heading for the central United States was threatening to take down trees and power lines and create treacherous travel conditions yesterday and into the weekend, the National Weather Service said.

Ice, freeze rain and winter storm warnings were in effect for a large swathe of the Plains, from the Texas panhandle north into Iowa and east through central Indiana, it added. </s> At least eight people have died in the US Midwest as the region shivers in the grip of its worst cold snap in decades.

An Iowa student found dead outside a college building is among victims of the deadly freeze.

Hospitals have been treating patients reporting frostbite as life across a swathe of the nation grinds to a halt.

The iciest blasts may still come on Thursday. Ninety million people - a third of the US - have seen temperatures of -17C (0F) or below.

Some 250 million Americans overall have experienced the "polar vortex" conditions, but southern states such as Florida have escaped the brutal chill.
• How cold is it where you are?

How did the fatalities occur?
• University of Iowa student Gerald Belz, 18, was found unresponsive behind a campus building before dawn on Wednesday and later died in hospital. Officials said weather was a factor
• A 70-year-old Michigan man was found dead near his home in Detroit, Michigan, on Wednesday. Officials said he was "inadequately dressed for the weather"
• Another Michigan man was also found frozen to death in his neighbourhood
• On Tuesday, a 55-year-old man froze to death in a garage in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, having "apparently collapsed after shovelling snow", according to a medical examiner
• An 82-year-old in Pekin, Illinois, died from hypothermia just outside his home on Tuesday
• A 75-year-old man was fatally struck by a snow plough near Chicago on Monday. The driver has since been placed on paid leave pending an investigation, according to WGN9 News
• In northern Indiana, a young couple died after a collision on icy roads

Thursday could see America's third largest city of Chicago breaking its 1985 record low of -32C (-25F), according to meteorologists.

The chill is drifting eastward on Thursday, bringing sub-zero temperatures to Northeastern cities such as Boston.

Areas downwind of the Great Lakes are expected to be buried by intense lake-effect snow lakes into Thursday night.

The region near Buffalo, New York, should see the heaviest snowfall. Snow could fall at rates of 3in-5in (7cm-12cm) per hour.

The icy cold is expected to loosen its grip on Friday.

With wind chill factored in, the Midwest and Great Lakes have felt temperatures closer to -40C (-40F) and -53C (-63F), which is enough to cause frostbite in under five minutes.

But by the end of the weekend, Chicago could see temperatures as high as 10C (50F).

"It's going to be at least a 60-degree swing for Chicago," David Hamrick, a National Weather Service forecaster, told Reuters news agency.

How is the cold snap affecting daily life?

The Arctic weather could cost the US billions of dollars. In 2014, a similar polar freeze cost the country an estimated $5bn (£3.8bn), CBS News reported.

In Minnesota, residents have been asked by natural gas company Xcel Energy to reduce their home thermostats to 17C (63F) in order to help the company handle heating demands.

Michigan residents have had similar requests from their utility companies as providers struggle to keep the states warm.

Detroit, Michigan, has had over two dozen water mains freezing over this week. A city spokesman told the Associated Press the pipes were installed up to 1.8m below the frost line, but with such drastically low temperatures, the ground has still frozen through.

The US Postal Service has suspended all mail deliveries for the second day to parts of six states.

Over 2,300 flights have been cancelled and another 3,500 delayed due to the polar vortex.

As ice and snow continue to build up, roads have become increasingly dangerous across the northern US.

At least two people were critically injured in a 27-car pile-up on icy roads in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania.

In Minnesota, prison visits were cancelled over the cold, according to the New York Times.

The Illinois city became a frozen ghost town after temperatures fell to -30C (-23F), colder than parts of Antarctica.

A Good Samaritan paid for 70 homeless Chicagoans to stay in a hotel as temperatures dropped.

Salvation Army spokeswoman Jacqueline Rachev told the Washington Post: "It's a deadly situation for anyone. We're thrilled that someone was in a position to be able to do this."

Most of the thousands of cancelled flights this week were coming out of Chicago's airports - O'Hare International is ranked as one of the top 10 busiest airports in the world.

Amtrak also cancelled all trains into Chicago on Wednesday, affecting 55 trains, and said most would be cancelled on Thursday as well.

As the Midwestern city is one of the company's hubs, train service nationwide could also be impacted.

The chill was even too much for Chicago's Disney on Ice show, which cancelled its Wednesday performance.

Most of Canada was under some sort of weather warning - from extreme cold in the Prairies, Quebec and Ontario to heavy snows in Alberta and Nova Scotia.

In Toronto, where winters tend to be milder compared to cities such as Montreal and Ottawa, temperatures had plummeted to -18C (0F). Icy roads and several transit delays made for a hellish commute for millions of the city's residents.

Environment Canada issued extreme cold warnings for most parts of Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba, urging residents to limit their exposure to cold and keep pets indoors.

"If it's too cold for you to stay outside, it's too cold for your pet to stay outside," the weather agency warned.

Advocates expressed concern for homeless people living in cities hit by the extreme temperatures.

In Winnipeg, the capital of Manitoba, temperatures were a frigid -40C (-40F), with wind chill factors making it feel like -50C (-58F).

"If you don't get it in December, you will get it in January or February or March. What do you expect? It's 'Winterpeg'," Caroline Rodriguez told the CBC, in reference to the city's nickname.

In Calgary, Alberta, temperatures were a relatively balmy -3C (27F), but were expected to plummet overnight and through the weekends.

In parts of rural northern Alberta, 15in of snow were expected to fall. </s> Winter storm Eleanor reached Europe on Wednesday, bringing heavy winds and flooding and leaving at least three people dead.

The storm battered France, Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands on Wednesday, after hitting the U.K., where thousands of homes are still without power and winds reached 100 miles per hour, according to the BBC.

A skier in the French Alps died after being hit by a falling tree, the New York reported. Two people died on the northern coast of Spain after being swept away by a wave, according to the BBC. And several people were injured after winds blew a train off its tracks in Switzerland.

About 200,000 households in France lost electricity as a result of the storm, the Associated Press reported, while strong winds caused flight delays at major airports in Paris and Amsterdam. </s> New Delhi (CNN) Fierce winds and lightning strikes created by a powerful dust storm have killed about 110 people and injured hundreds more in northwestern India since late Wednesday, according to local authorities.

In the state of Rajasthan, at least 35 people died and more than 200 were injured after winds downed more than 8,000 electricity poles and uprooted hundreds of trees, officials told CNN.

"This has resulted in widespread electricity cuts and water shortages. Most of the deaths occurred after walls and roofs of houses collapsed in the middle of the night," Jaipur District Divisional Commissioner T Ravi Kant said.

An Indian traffic policeman covers his face as he stands on duty in New Delhi.

In neighboring Uttar Pradesh, the death toll stood at at least 73, with the vast majority of those deaths occurring in the city of Agra, where 43 have been confirmed dead. Four people were killed in Uttarakhand.

According to Sanjay Kumar, the relief commissioner at the Uttar Pradesh state disaster management authority, the high casualty number is the result of people becoming trapped under falling debris. "Many houses collapsed due to high intensity winds, or the trees fell over onto the houses," said Kumar.

Read More </s> RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Searchers have found two more bodies inside vehicles that were submerged in flood waters in North Carolina from Hurricane Matthew, increasing the toll in the state to 26 dead.

Gov. Pat McCrory said at a news conference Saturday that the victims were found in Cumberland County and Wayne County after flood waters from last weekend’s rains receded.

Flooding triggered by the hurricane has killed at least 43 people in the United States and more than 500 people in Haiti.

McCrory says most of the people killed in his state either drove or were walking through flood waters and were swept away.

The governor says recovery from the flood continues even as waters continue to crest. Only 13,000 customers in the state remain without power.
The death toll from "Winter Storm Argos" in the U.S. state of New Hampshire rises to five.