A significant winter storm is ongoing Friday morning across the South after producing snowy and icy weather in the Dallas Metroplex and the southern Plains.

The winter storm that knocked out power and brought plunging temperatures to other parts of the country moves into metro Atlanta and north Georgia this weekend, and state officials are urging residents to avoid unnecessary travel.

At least 46 million people were under a winter storm warning as of Thursday as the storm spreads along the Gulf Coast Friday, according to the weather service. The storm should weaken by Saturday, bringing lighter snow between 1 and 3 inches to parts of the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic and the Ohio Valley before exiting off the Carolinas.