Deep freeze in the Midwest

Frozen water hangs off the Grand Haven South Pier and frames the north pier in Grand Haven, Mich.   (Natalie Kolb / Associated Press)

John Koerner and his wife, Cindy, of Battle Creek, Mich., carefully cross the the Grand Haven South Pier; cold weather lingered Thursday in Michigan.  (Natalie Kolb / Associated Press)

Cold weather lingered Thursday in Michigan as many students returned to school for the first time this year, and roads were slippery with freezing rain and snow in the forecast, which that could cause more problems.   (Natalie Kolb / Associated Press)

A firefighter is covered in frost as he directs a hose on a fire that engulfed Happy’s Pizza in Ann Arbor, Mich.   (Courtney Sacco / Associated Press)

Icicles form on street signals as firefighters pour water on a fire that engulfed Happy’s Pizza in Ann Arbor, Mich., amid subfreezing weather.  (Melanie Maxwell / Associated Press)

A woman walks to her car in the long term parking lot at Indianapolis International Airport. The coldest, most dangerous blast of polar air in decades gripped the Midwest and pushed toward the East and South, closing schools and day care centers, grounding flights and forcing people to pull their hoods and scarves tight to protect exposed skin from nearly instant frostbite.   (Joe Vitti / Associated Press)

Delicate patterns of frost form on a bus stop in Detroit, where frigid temperatures broke records and residents braced against bitter winds as schools and government offices were closed.   (Paul Sancya / Associated Press)

Only his eyes are visible as a frost-crusted Hank Wade clears snow from a sidewalk in Lyndhurst, Ohio.  (Tony Dejak / Associated Press)

A woman pushes her daughter and their groceries through blowing snow at a shopping center in Saginaw Township, Mich.  (Jeff Schrier / Associated Press)

Ice fog partially shrouds the lighthouse at the entrance to Cleveland harbor on Lake Erie. An official low of minus-11 degrees in Cleveland broke the old record of nine-9 set in 1884.   (Mark Duncan / Associated Press)

A passenger jet is sprayed with deicing agent at Indianapolis International Airport.  (Joe Vitti / Associated Press)

Ice covers rocks and encases brush at Edgewater Park in Cleveland.   (Mark Duncan / Associated Press)

Lynette Johnson blows the snow from her driveway in Springville, N.Y.  (Harry Scull Jr. / Associated Press)

Bill Brasche is bundled up against the snow and wind as he clears his driveway in Springfield, Ill.  (Justin L. Fowler / Associated Press)

The reflecting pool on the National Mall in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington is frozen over.   (Evan Vucci / Associated Press)

With temperatures at about 22 degrees below zero, it was hard to find the beauty in the brutal weather in Bismarck, N.D. On Highway 83, north of the state capital, passersby could see a sundog, or a ring of light visible around the sun or moon when light is refracted through ice crystals in the atmosphere.  (Brian Peterson / Associated Press)

Allan Umscheid, owner of Yards By Al in Lawrence, Kan., feels the bitter wind and catches drifting snow on his face as he runs a snow blower.  (Mike Yoder / Associated Press)

Two people duck into the blowing snow as they leave the U City Loop next to the statue of Chuck Berry in St. Louis.   (J.B. Forbes / Associated Press)

A car is covered in snow in Zionsville, Ind.   (Darron Cummings / Associated Press)

Daryl Daugherty clears the sidewalk in front of his home in Carmel, Ind., as temperatures dropped at least 10 below zero.   (Michael Conroy / Associated Press)

Jenny Hackett walks across a street in St. Louis as snow swirls around her.  (Jeff Roberson / Associated Press)

Few cars drive on Interstate 44 in Fenton, Mo. Snow-covered roads and high winds were creating dangerous driving conditions from Missouri to Delaware ahead of a “polar vortex” that will bring below-zero temperatures not seen in years to much of the nation in the coming days, likely setting records.  (J.B. Forbes / Associated Press)

Leroy Griffis, a maintenance supervisor for the Flint Downtown Development Authority, directs a snowplow to an assignment in downtown Flint, Mich., where 16.2 inches of snow fell.   (Jake May / Associated Press)

A woman walks briskly as she arrives at the La Salle Street commuter rail station in Chicago. Temperatures were expected to reach well below zero.  (Charles Rex Arbogast / Associated Press)