A winter storm sweeping through the U.S. South on Tuesday was dumping snow at levels millions of residents haven’t seen before.

The South is bracing for a major winter storm, most of the nation remains gripped by extreme cold, and high winds could fan flames in California.

For example, Lake Charles, La., along the Gulf Coast, showed snowfall rates of over 1 inch per hour this morning and early afternoon and visibility down to a quarter of a mile with blowing snow. This is one of the reasons why blizzard warnings were posted briefly for that region earlier.