Powerful winter storm to batter U.S.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- A "powerful" winter storm will batter the central and eastern parts of the United States through the end of the week, forecasters said on Wednesday.

The storm system will be "significant and disruptive," according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

The storm, the NWS said, is forecast to produce a multitude of weather hazards over the next several days, as heavy snowfall, strong winds, and dangerously cold temperatures span from the Intermountain West through the Plains, the Great Lakes, and the central Appalachians.

Much of the country "will see dangerous cold over the next few days, and it will arrive suddenly with a powerful Arctic front," the NWS Weather Prediction Center tweeted.

Travel may become difficult immediately behind the front with bursts of snow and gusty winds leading to sudden whiteouts, flash freezing, and icy roads, the agency warned.