Polar freeze turns deadly, moves to US East and South

Ice forms on the shore of the East River due to unusually low temperatures caused by a Polar Vortex in New York. A deadly blast of arctic air shattered decades-old temperature records as it enveloped the eastern United States, canceling thousands of flights, driving energy prices higher and overwhelming shelters for homeless people. (Reuters)

January 9, 2014 22:39 IST

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Ice forms on the shore of the East River due to unusually low temperatures caused by a Polar Vortex in New York. A deadly blast of arctic air shattered decades-old temperature records as it enveloped the eastern United States, canceling thousands of flights, driving energy prices higher and overwhelming shelters for homeless people. (Reuters)

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A man walks past a snow encrusted bicycle with wind chills nearing minus 30 Fahrenheit on Tuesday in downtown Chicago. (AP)

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A pair of photographers shoot images of the Chicago skyline near North Avenue Beach as cold temperatures remain with wind chills nearing minus 30 Fahrenheit on Tuesday in Chicago. Dangerously cold polar air snapped decades-old records as it spread Tuesday from the Midwest to southern and eastern parts of the U.S. and eastern Canada, making it hazardous to venture outside and keeping many schools and businesses closed. (AP)

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The Chicago skyline is photographed behind a large chunk of ice near North Avenue Beach as cold temperatures remain with wind chills nearing minus 30 Fahrenheit on Tuesday in Chicago. (AP)

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The Toronto skyline is pictured with a frozen section of Lake Ontario. (AP)

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Lucas Hunter from Pittsburgh, walks to his hotel along Camp Road in Hamburg, N.Y. after a stretch of the New York State thruway was closed down due to high winds on Tuesday. (AP)

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Ice covers rocks and brush on the break wall at Edgewater Park in Cleveland Tuesday. An official low of -11 degrees broke the 130-year-old record for the date as cold polar air spread from the Midwest to southern and eastern parts of the U.S. and eastern Canada. (AP)

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A plow moves along a empty stretch of the New York State thruway in Hamburg N.Y., after it was closed down due to high winds. (AP)

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The lighthouse at Pere Marquette Beach is completely frozen after a severe winter storm hit on Tuesday in Muskegon, Mich. The brutal polar air that has made the Midwest shiver over the past few days spread to the East and the Deep South on Tuesday, shattering records that in some cases had stood for more than a century. (AP)