Winter storm brings bitter cold, power cuts and deadly tornado to US

In Chicago, a foot-and-a-half (46cm) of new snow forced public schools to cancel in-person classes for Tuesday

A person walks a dog in the Edgewater neighbourhood after a snowstorm in Chicago (Pat Nabong /Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

At least three people were found dead after a tornado tore through a seaside town in North Carolina at the rough edge of a winter storm that has left millions in the US without power in subfreezing temperatures.

The storm that overwhelmed power grids and immobilised the Southern Plains carried heavy snow and freezing rain into New England and the Deep South and left behind record-setting cold temperatures.