A polar vortex is expected to bring snow and ice to 26 states and D.C., threatening travel with blizzard conditions and record-low temperatures.

Nearly two-dozen states were under winter weather warnings from the National Weather Service as of early Monday.

Parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas began to see snowfall on Thursday as Southern states stretching to the Carolinas brace for the storm to reach them on Friday.

West Virginia: In western Grant and western Pendleton counties, 6 to 10 inches of snow is possible. In western Greenbrier County, 2 to 7 inches is predicted. Northern portions of the state could get 4 to 12 inches of snow, while the central and southeast sectors of the state could see 5 to 10 inches.

Temperatures are forecast to plummet below average for much of the nation, with the most severe cold gripping areas east of the Rocky Mountains and reaching as far south as the Gulf Coast and Florida. Dangerous wind chills are likely across many areas of the Southeast, too.

The developing storm system is forecast to bring heavy snow, crippling ice and severe weather across the country through the next three days.

With one storm safely out to sea, attention turns to the next system that's forecast to spread a wintry mess from Texas to the East Coast this week.

Nearly the entire state of Arkansas is under a winter storm warning until Friday night. Little Rock and Hot Springs are expecting around 6 inches of snow, with meteorologists urging people to delay any travel until conditions improve.

The pattern had been predicted to form for several months, and weak La Niña conditions were finally officially met this week.

Oil prices rose more than 1% on Thursday as cold weather gripped parts of the United States and Europe, boosting winter fuel demand.

The new year is ushering in a major winter storm across a wide swath of the United States, blasting large regions of the country with heavy snow and dangerous ice. 60 million people are under weather