A Frozen City: Stunning Images Of The Big Freeze Sweeping Through America

Weather records have tumbled across North America, with freezing temperatures even in the southern US.

The most extreme arctic blasts, blamed on a weather pattern known as the polar vortex, were said to have affected nearly 190 million people.

In Kentucky, an escaped prisoner turned himself in to get out of the cold.

Some parts of the Midwest hit -26C (-14F), as low as the Antarctic coast in winter, and much colder than the inside of a domestic freezer.

St. Simon's on the Sound Episcopal Church's fountains were frozen over Tuesday just after sunrise in Fort Walton Beach, Florida where locals are unaccustomed to such temperatures

Temperature records were shattered in states across the US, including Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Michigan, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York.

An exterior waterfall that froze overnight is seen at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC on Tuesday.

But it was Embarrass, Minnesota, that experienced the lowest temperature in the nation on Tuesday: -37C (-35F).

That was colder than readings recently recorded on the Red Planet by the Mars Rover.

Ice forms on rocks on the Brooklyn waterfront across from lower Manhattan in New York on Tuesday

A man warms himself before a fire in Indianapolis, Indiana

A man braves the freezing temperatures in Hamburg, New York state

The Chicago skyline is seen behind a large chunk of ice near North Avenue Beach as cold temperatures remain with wind chills nearing minus 30F on Tuesday

A vehicle drives through a barely visible intersection of Route 33 and Batavia Stafford Townline Road on Tuesday in Stafford, New York. Dangerously cold polar air snapped decades-old records as it spread Tuesday from the Midwest to southern and eastern parts of the U.S.

Garret Kelenske, 49, works to remove snow on the sidewalk in Muskegon Heights, Michigan on Tuesday as temperatures reached record lows across the country

A salesmen at a dealership digs out cars covered in snow in Indianapolis on Tuesday as temperatures hovered around zero

Ann Arbor firefighters covered in ice work to put out a fire that engulfed Happy's Pizza in Michigan on Tuesday

Ice hangs on a fire hydrant and hose as Ann Arbor firefighters battled the fire in extreme conditions

Ice covers rocks and brush on the break wall at Edgewater Park in Cleveland, Ohio as half the U.S. was battered by the winter storm

With temperatures in downtown Pittsburgh at -5 degrees on Tuesday, a flock of gulls huddles on the ice formed on the Allegheny river. A high of 2 degrees is predicted for Tuesday in Pittsburgh

A commuter departs from Union Station with wind chills nearing minus 30F in Chicago (left) as a man struggles to stay warm on the streets of New York City 

A man crosses in front of a steam vent in downtown Detroit, Michigan as a deep freeze set in along much of the eastern seaboard

A view from a plane window shows Chicago encased in ice. More than 3,700 flights were canceled today

Wherever you are in America, we pray that you are warm and happy!

Source: BBC News, Image credit (AP)