Deaths reported as rare winter storm sweeps southern U.S.

• Lake Charles, La., saw its first-ever blizzard warning on Tuesday due to heavy snow and high winds from the extreme weather that's tied to the polar vortex event across the Lower 48 states, as it left some 300 million people under cold weather alerts.

Threat level: Rare winter storm and blizzard warnings and advisories stretched from South Texas to Jacksonville, Florida.

• The once-in-a-generation winter storm with "heavy snow, sleet, and freezing rain" was spreading eastward from parts of the Florida Panhandle through the eastern Carolinas, per a National Weather Service forecast discussion.
• "Major highway and air traffic disruptions, including possible road closures and flight cancellations, may continue for several days even after the snowfall ends," the NWS noted.
• "The Arctic Air Mass will create widespread sub-freezing overnight lows along the Gulf Coast and throughout the Southeast. The cold weather will exacerbate power outages," it added.
• "From Tuesday evening into Wednesday, 0.10 inches of freezing rain will develop across northeastern Florida and southeastern Georgia."

Situation report: States of emergency were declared in states including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi ahead of the extreme weather event, but storm-related deaths have been reported across the region.

• Five deaths were reported in a vehicle crash on a highway between La Pryor and Batesville in Zavala County, Texas, on Tuesday morning.
• The Dale County, Alabama coroner confirmed two storm-related deaths.
• Austin-Travis County emergency officials "have responded to more than a dozen cold exposure calls since Monday, including two fatal incidents," per a city of Austin, Texas, statement
• Georgia officials said at least one person had died of hypothermia in the Atlanta area.

Zoom in: Winter weather warnings are impacting areas not usually affected by extreme cold, with the NWS Jacksonville noting on X that southeast Georgia into northeastern Florida among the areas facing snow, sleet and ice.

• The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office in a Facebook post urged people to stay off the roads if possible Tuesday night into Wednesday.
• "We are expecting some winter weather we're not used to in Northeast Florida," per the post. "The safest place you can be Tuesday night and Wednesday is at home!"

Zoom out: "Bitterly cold" high pressure extended from the Ohio Valley to the Southern Plains, bringing temperatures 25 to 30 degrees below average for parts of the Mid-Atlantic in addition to the Central Gulf Coast, per the NWS.

• New York Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency in 13 counties on Tuesday, with communities near Lake Ontario forecast to receive up to 3 feet of snow and those in the state's west up to 2 feet.

Between the lines: Studies suggest that polar vortex shifts over longer timescales may be more likely because of human-caused climate change, per Axios' Andrew Freedman, who notes this is an area of active research.

• Despite this extreme weather event, the Environmental Protection Agency notes that total snowfall has fallen in many parts of the U.S. since widespread observations began in 1930.
• "In addition to changing the overall rate of precipitation, climate change can lead to changes in the type of precipitation," per the EPA.
• "One reason for the decline in total snowfall is because more winter precipitation is falling in the form of rain instead of snow."

More from Axios:

• Read Axios New Orleans' coverage
• Read Axios Houston's coverage
• In photos: Rare snowstorm hits much of the U.S. South, Texas

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.