A wide swath of winter weather is expected to slam the U.S. through the weekend, moving from the Southwest through Texas and Oklahoma, across the South and Tennessee Valley.

A severe winter storm is expected to sweep across the United States this week, with a potent cocktail of heavy snow, ice and extreme cold, affecting up to 160 million people.

"We see a lot of deadly fires because of heating equipment," said State Fire Marshal Debra Knight.