Snow, bone-chilling cold across much of U.S.

Piling snow coupled with bone-chilling cold iced over roads Tuesday, causing hundreds of accidents.

An invasion of arctic air could send temperatures plummeting to 25 degrees below in parts of the Midwest.

"Checking the forecast to see when it's going to get back above zero. Just counting it down," Justin Childres said.

The icy forecast prompted city officials in Chicago to close schools Wednesday.

On Tuesday, one school lost heat when the furnace broke, but the kids were kept in class.

"Why would you put child in school for six hours with a coat and hat on all day and expect them to function?" grandmother Momma Hawk said.

Virginia's largest school system said it made a mistake when it decided not to cancel classes Tuesday.

Parents complained about the dangerous commute that led to multiple bus accidents.

Several students were injured.

In Iowa, the deep freeze may have played a role in a water main break, crumbling a road and opening an 8-foot crater.

"Something this significant, we'll be lucky if we're done in a day just to get the water back on," Sioux Cities Utilities Superintendent Tim Higgins said.

But while many are hunkering down, others braved the outdoors.

"Born and raised in the snow belt, so I gotta get out. I am not going to sit inside until March or April," a snowmobiler sad.

And with this cold snap expected to linger the rest of the week there's no shortage of helpful advice.

"You can't wear summer clothes in the winter cause you'll get so cold," 7-year-old Lucas said.