NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — A developing winter storm threatens to drop snow, sleet and freezing rain on parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas as frigid air that escaped the Arctic plunges temperatures to subfreezing levels in some of the southernmost points of the U.S.

Texas is preparing for severe winter weather. An area stretching from Texas to Tennessee braced Wednesday for the possible arrival of freezing rain and snow even as some other parts of the U.S. hit by the plunging polar vortex this week began to shake off its icy effects.

Our chilly weather could bring freezing rain and snow to parts of the Hill Country and I-35 corridor, local forecasters say. Why it matters: A polar vortex hauling arctic air from Canada down across the U.