'Ice Friday' makes for bizarre, frigid images in Texas

‘Ice Friday’ makes for bizarre, frigid images in Texas

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Bob Gannon of says he has a snow blower but decides to use a snow shovel for now as the first snow of the season rolls into the region. (Suchat Pederson / AP)

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Much of Dallas is coated in ice. The ice storm that has hit northern Texas has left more 250,000 residents and businesses without power and has led to more than 1,700 flight delays and cancellations across the country. (Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)

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City of Richardson employees Dickie Cooper, left, and Nate Griffith use chainsaws and other light equipment to cut up a fallen tree blocking a neighborhood intersection. An ice storm in North Texas has knocked out power to more than a quarter of a million homes and businesses, canceled almost 1,000 flights and contributed to a fatal wreck. (Tony Gutierrez / Associated Press)

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This image released by the NASA GOES Project shows a storm crossing the Midwest. Ice, snow and freezing weather are part of the winter storm that stretches from the Texas-Mexico border to the Ohio Valley. Forecasters are reporting it as one of the worst to hit the U.S. in recent years, snarling travel on the ground and in the air and knocking out power for hundreds of thousands of people. (NASA via AFP/Getty Images)

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Lauren Roberts, left, and her friend Croline Brooks enjoy the frozen conditions at Hoblitzelle Park in Plano, Texas. (Stewart F. House / Getty Images)

By Soumya Karlamangla

Dec. 6, 2013 12:53 PM PT

It has been dubbed “Ice Friday,” the result of a frigid bout of weather that hit usually sunny north Texas before moving east.

The National Weather Service issued winter storm and ice warnings for parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Tennessee. It said the storm was marked by “bitterly cold Arctic air.”

Snow, sleet and freezing rain will continue throughout Friday across the southern plains and lower Mississippi River Valley before tapering off. From the Ohio River Valley into the Northeast, wintry precipitation is expected into the night and is expected to continue through the weekend across much of the country.

The storm is forecast to reach the East Coast over the weekend, stretching from Atlanta to New York.

In the Dallas-Forth Worth region, the bad weather has prompted flight cancellations, highway closures, power outages, snow days for schools and businesses -- and a whole bunch of freaky photos.

Below are several snapshots of the ice posted on Twitter by Texans unfamiliar with the cold weather:

Here in North Texas it’s cold! What’s the weather like where you are? Go ahead...make me jealous! #wintersstorm #ice pic.twitter.com/SgJrNNrcFY— Lucky Monkey Books (@LuckyMonkeyBks) December 6, 2013

OMG look how it is outside! It’s not snow it’s just ice.. Why is Texas so weird ?? pic.twitter.com/V8U4XcWP6F— BEAU BE MY 2/5 (@Queenouix) December 6, 2013

Hey look. Window down. Ice stays. pic.twitter.com/kxk3swzLGV— Jeff Cavanaugh (@JC1053) December 6, 2013

This HUGE tree was a casualty of overnight ice, on campus at SMU in Dallas pic.twitter.com/viowXZJtF4— Peter Doocy (@pdoocy) December 6, 2013

ice day in texas ¿¿¿¿¿¿ pic.twitter.com/P3ODVe0ljC— SoMo Seduction (@SoMoSeduction) December 6, 2013

Ice storm in Texas! & yes! You could say I’m a photographer¿¿¿¿¿ pic.twitter.com/UubrzrcUY2— AnneMarie Spiker (@spikeyyyA) December 6, 2013

The whip looking soOo... Icy! #SLEET #ICE #SNOW # DALLAS #TEXAS #DECEMBER #2013 pic.twitter.com/EQuWGuIova— NIZO [knee-zoe] (@DaBeatRockerz) December 6, 2013

“@NBCDFW: Watch: North Texans having fun in the snow https://t.co/5LUP205ZcM #dfwwx pic.twitter.com/JmBUAruIzl” Is it my turn yet ?! ¿¿¿¿— M¿.Crayola ¿ (@Th3BuKkak3) December 6, 2013

@DanHenryFox4 @wfaaweather @CBS11Larry Look what I found in my backyard! The end is near! pic.twitter.com/vCSe4HtpdI— Jamie Kelly (@JamieSportsTalk) December 6, 2013

Ice, Ice baby. Tree roping a new sport in Dallas; thousands are down taking the power with it. pic.twitter.com/UTX11f55I7— Kate Delaney (@realradiotalk) December 6, 2013

An uncharacteristic sight in Central Texas: ice on the side view mirror. pic.twitter.com/JajZyzPukv— Chuck DeVore (@chuckdevore) December 6, 2013

Just gonna #chill at the Dallas airport because as you can see it’s Ice Force One out there. #frifotos pic.twitter.com/ULhSSn8Onp— Katie Jackson (@LazyJKatie) December 6, 2013

#Dallas ice, ice baby pic.twitter.com/mkK9q64J9Y— DJ (@dougie427) December 6, 2013

Big ice storm overnight in Dallas. Found these ice-covered branches in our backyard. pic.twitter.com/lklMhaQT3C— Ray Pritchard (@raypritchard) December 6, 2013

@Dallas_Observer #Icepocalypse forces doggy inmate to play in 1/16 inch deep ice. Absolutely ridiculous. pic.twitter.com/LWDJjgNTzX— Diane Michelle (@DianeMichelle2L) December 6, 2013