Powerful US storms create blizzard conditions and threaten to spawn tornadoes

Snowploughs were called in to help free stuck drivers in Minneapolis. Picture: AP

Powerful storms that killed two people in Mississippi and ripped roofs from buildings in a small Oklahoma town have charged across America, threatening more communities in the central to eastern United States.

Meanwhile, forecasters warned that a Pacific storm was expected to bring widespread rain and mountain snow across California and other parts of the West from Wednesday into Friday.