SNOW HITS NORTH AMERICA

• A bitter winter storm stretching 2,000 miles (3,200km) has hit swathes of the US and Canada with heavy snow, rain and high winds.
• More than 20in (51cm) of snow fell on Chicago, bringing the typically bustling city to a frozen halt.
• Southern Ontario in Canada seemed to have escaped the worst of the storm, with 15 to 20cm of snow accumulating.
• Environment Canada had predicted the storm would drop 30cm on the province.
• More snow was forecast for Canada's Maritime provinces overnight into Thursday.More than 6,300 US flights were cancelled, including 939 from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport and 341 from New York's LaGuardia.
• Illinois state police said much of the state's road system was impassable, and around Chicago, authorities closed major interstate highways and the area's commuter rail system.
• The National Weather Service warned of "zero visibility" and bluntly warned Americans in at least four states: "Do not travel."  "The storm has produced blizzard conditions with snow and blowing snow across the Central Plains.
• Total snowfall accumulations of one to two feet of snow are expected for a large swathe of the central and north-eastern states," the service advised