ATLANTA (AP) — Powerful storms that killed two people in Mississippi and ripped roofs from buildings in a small Oklahoma town charged eastward Wednesday, spawning tornado warnings near the East Coast while heavy snow struck the Midwest and dry, windy weather fanned wildfires in Texas.

Meanwhile, forecasters warned that a Pacific storm was expected to bring widespread rain and mountain snow across California and other parts of the West from Wednesday into Friday.

Tornado warnings were issued in the Carolinas, Florida and Virginia on Wednesday morning. Officials in Union County, North Carolina, said in a social media post that they were assessing storm damage in the Unionville area and the weather service was expected to investigate whether a tornado touched down. No injuries were reported, officials said.

In Texas, high winds and dry vegetation fueled wildfires in several areas of the state. One burned at least 20 homes and structures in coastal San Patricio County near Corpus Christi, County Judge David Krebs said. There were no immediate reports of injuries. The National Weather Service said critical fire weather conditions were still expected across south central Texas on Wednesday.

Severe weather threats persisted a day after stormy winds forced changes to Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans, which moved up and shortened its two biggest parades.

In Mississippi, two people died due to the severe weather, Gov. Tate Reeves said Tuesday in a social media post without going into detail. WAPT-TV reported that one person died from a falling power line in Madison County, while a driver in the same county was killed by a tree falling on his car.

At least seven confirmed tornadoes touched down Tuesday in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana, according to preliminary information from the weather service. That number could increase Wednesday, with potential for severe storms stretching from Florida to New York state, said Bill Bunting, deputy director of the agency's Storm Prediction Center.

“These storm systems not only have a warm side with severe thunderstorms, but a cold side that can have all forms of winter weather,” Bunting said. “And looking at the forecast maps, this is not the last storm that we’ll see in March.”

Blizzard conditions hit eastern Nebraska overnight into Wednesday, bringing around 4 inches (10.2 centimeters) of snow and winds up to 65 mph (105 kph), limiting visibility and closing numerous snowy roads, including a stretch of Interstate 80.

The Minneapolis-St. Paul area, southern Minnesota and much of Iowa were on the downward slide of a powerful winter storm. The storm brought the heaviest snow of the season to Minneapolis, where the weather service reported 7.4 inches (18.8 centimeters) at the airport. Other nearby communities reported a foot of snow or more.

“I wouldn’t want to say it’s unheard of or unusual but it’s still pretty remarkable to see the power of nature with these storms,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Jacob Beitlich.

The slippery roads led to at least 70 crashes, the Minnesota State Patrol reported. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz authorized the National Guard to provide support and help rescue stranded drivers.

In a South Carolina community near Myrtle Beach, where firefighters have been battling wildfires since the weekend, Horry County Fire Rescue said in a social media post that heavy winds would keep firefighters from responding to flare-ups and spot fires by air and from entering woods where damaged trees could fall.

The storms have left thousands of people without electricity Wednesday across the central and southeastern United States, including more than 81,000 customers in Texas, about 30,000 in Tennessee and about 27,000 in Alabama, according to PowerOutage.us.

Gusts in the northeast U.S. could also lead to ground stops or delays at major airports in that region, the Federal Aviation Administration said in its operational plan for the day. Nearly 600 flights scheduled to fly into or out of U.S. airports on Wednesday were canceled, according to FlightAware.com, which tracks cancellations and delays nationwide.

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Associated Press journalists from across the country contributed.