11 dead in link with severe cold as U.S. braces for winter "bomb cyclone"

WASHINGTON, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- At least 11 people in the United States have died in link with severe cold since Tuesday morning, officials said Wednesday.

A 27-year-old woman, Lindsey Klima, was found dead on the shore of Lake Winnebago after she left a New Year's Eve gathering in Fond du Lac, the state of Wisconsin.

Authorities said she stepped outside to smoke a cigarette and could have fallen at the shoreline before she succumbed to the cold, CNN affiliate WLUK reported.

Klima's death is among five weather-related deaths in Wisconsin. Two other people have died in the states of North Dakota and Missouri.

Four others have died in Texas, including two homeless people who died in Houston after being exposed to freezing conditions, Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo tweeted.

The northeastern America is bracing for another brutal arctic invasion on Wednesday, as a new storm is making its way to the country's southeast, prompting schools to close in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.

It is forecast to head north, where there is the potential for the storm to become a "bomb cyclone" as it strengthens off the New England coast on Thursday. Heavy snow, hurricane-force gusts and blizzard conditions are all possible in this scenario. Enditem