At least 7 dead and thousands of flights cancelled as snowstorm hits US

A dangerous winter storm has swept across the US, leaving at least seven people dead and cutting power to hundreds of thousands of homes, the BBC writes.

According to the US National Weather Service (NWS), schools and roads across the country have been closed and flights have been cancelled.

Fatalities have been reported in Louisiana, Texas, Tennessee, and Kansas.

As of Sunday afternoon, more than 800,000 households had lost power, according to poweroutage.us. Meanwhile, more than 11,000 flights were cancelled, FlightAware reported.

Widespread heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain could last for days, and the storm could affect around 180 million Americans – more than half the population.