Severe weather is expected to bring subzero temperatures the northern Plains as soon as Thursday, then reach the Mississippi Valley, the Northeast and the Ohio Valley by Sunday.

Bread was flying off the shelves, salt was being loaded into trucks and utility workers were nervously watching forecasts Thursday as a huge winter storm that could bring catastrophic damage, widespre...

The Weather Prediction Center noted that blanketed roads and reduced visibility “are among the primary hazards expected” where forecasters anticipate snow.