From New England to the Carolinas and into the Midwest, winter has definitively come for much of the United States and forecasters are warning that the worst cold in two decades could be on the horizon:

• The National Weather Service reported temperatures in the negative 30's in Saranac Lake, New York.
• States of emergency were declared from Mississippi to Washington, DC, where the federal government shut down after getting hit with about 5 inches of snow.

• According to NBC, Boston received more than 13 inches of snow, raising its total snowfall for this winter to 95.7 inches, a foot away from the all-time record. The city has spent more than $30 million on snow removal already this year, according to CNN. According to local news stations there, the MBTA (Metro Boston Transit Authority) is paying students, union workers, and anyone looking to make some cash $30 an hour to shovel snow. Prison inmates have also been enlisted to help remove snow, possibly for as little as 20¢ an hour (the median wage for state prisoners, according to Think Progress).
• At least six people have died from the latest storms.

• Niagara Falls is covered with ice as temperatures in the area reached 13 below zero (although the Falls are not frozen solid).
• In New York City, the cold has been so severe that Bryant Park's fountain has frozen solid and "the East River is a big mass of frozen toxic waste," according to NY Mag.

• Lake Erie is 94% covered in ice.
• And, finally, for a bit of levity: the Ithaca, NY Tourism board added a pop-up recommending would-be visitors to head to Florida instead. “Due to this ridiculously stupid winter, Ithaca invites you to visit the Florida Keys this week," read the note.