Winter storm blankets southern West Virginia with snow, record cold

 FAYETTE COUNTY---

A storm that some are calling "generational" is blanketing the area just in time for Christmas.

The system has forced closures of wide swaths of highways in the Midwest and prompted emergency measures here in the state of West Virginia.

This winter storm carries two components. First, the snow accumulation as the storm dumps winter weather across the continental United States. For the most part, the worst of that is over and roads are beginning to clear. The second component of the storm, the wind chill and overall temperature, is expected to get worse.

Temperatures are expected to dip below zero for much of the region. And the wind chill will push even lower for some local businesses. The cold snap is dulling the last-minute Christmas shopping rush.

"It's been a little bit slower today, but I will say the folks who have come in are spending a lot more time in here. So there's been time shopping. But I think also important, going back out in that cold," Mandy Lester, gallery director at Tamarack Shopping Mall, said.

As temperatures drop dangerously, power outages are a concern. There have been isolated incidents around the area with most affecting fewer than five people and no major outages yet. If people need a place to go to get out of the cold, warming centers will be open around the area.

"We want to make sure that there's somewhere, someplace that is warm for individuals to go on these cold nights," Kevin Walker, Fayette County's emergency manager, said.

The CDC recommends keeping exposed body parts covered and saying well-hydrated to avoid frostbite, but with the wind chill temps expected to dip well below -30 degrees overnight, frostbite can appear in fewer than 15 minutes.