Snow flurries are rare in the southern US – now a blizzard has hit

A rare winter storm is bringing snow and freezing rain to parts of the US Deep South, closing highways and airports and prompting the first blizzard warning in southwest Louisiana.

Four people are believed to have died from exposure to the cold so far — two cases are being investigated as cold-related by authorities in Austin, Texas, while two hypothermic deaths have been reported in Georgia and Milwaukee.

The extreme weather is part of a bitterly cold air mass that has descended on the southern and eastern US.

Video shows nuns and a priest enjoying a snowball fight in Matei, Louisiana, as a skier is dragged down a street in Charleston, South Carolina.

Read more about the rare winter storm.