'Polar Vortex' freezes US like never before in history

Temperatures in the US have been running in the negative range as a result of 'Polar Vortex' that has paralysed most of the states, including Chicago plunging deep in the historic freeze.

Chicago saw a record low of minus 16, high of minus 11, and with a windchill of minus 34 on Monday due to an Arctic blast that plunged deep into the central US on Monday.

According to Cnet, Nashville, Tennessee, were 40 degrees colder than Albany, New York; Memphis recorded 20 degrees colder than Anchorage, Alaska; and Atlanta colder than Moscow, Russia or Idaho.

The historic freeze that "polar vortex" is pushing into much of the US is reportedly not just another winter storm and it is the coldest in 20 years in many areas.

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton ordered the state's 2,000 public schools to close on Monday, the first such order since 1997.

The National Weather Service has warned that wind chills in the 40-below range can cause frostbite in a matter of minutes.

Meanwhile, authorities have blamed a total of 15 deaths on the cold so far, 11 of them from traffic accidents.

The National Weather Service adopted the Twitter hashtag "#Chiberia" for Chicago as parts of the vast Siberian region, such as Tobolsk, had Fahrenheit temps in the low teens at the start of this week, with some parts had 50 below zero temperatures.

The report said that Chicago opened up 12 centers for residents to seek warmth, including libraries and some other city facilities apart from100 warming centers open statewide.

CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller has predicted that by Wednesday, temperatures will start edging closer to normal, and by Thursday temperatures in most of the country will be back to normal, or even a bit warmer.