By Roger Petterson
The Associated Press

Millions of people shivered without electricity Thursday in the Carolinas as one of the worst ice- and snowstorms in years snapped tree limbs, snarled air travel around the country and kept children home from school in a large part of the East.

At least 20 deaths had been blamed on the storm since it blew across the southern Plains earlier in the week.

The Carolinas were the hardest hit as the weight of ice and snow snapped tree limbs and sent them crashing onto power lines. In Raleigh, N.C., the crack of buckling pines and oaks sounded like gunfire during hunting season.

Matt and Dawn Heric had been without heat in Durham, N.C., since the electricity went off late Wednesday. "Unfortunately, none of the fireplaces are serviceable," Matt Heric said of their 90-year-old house.

North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley declared a state of emergency and waived most weight limits for trucks removing debris and repairing utility lines.

The storm was "probably the largest single-event power outage we've had in this state," said Bryan Beaty, secretary of the state's public safety department.

Duke Power said about 1.2 million homes and businesses were blacked out Thursday in North and South Carolina.