A winter storm warning was issued by the National Weather Service on Thursday at 3:36 p.m. EST in effect until Friday at 1 p.m. EST for Leelanau, Benzie, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, Manistee and Wexford counties.

Half the U.S. population will likely see some effect from the sprawling storm that will move across the country this weekend, meteorologists said.

More than a third of the U.S. will be impacted by the upcoming winter storm.

Here are some essential supplies to stock up on as a massive winter storm is expected to affect more than 40 states and over 235 million people this weekend.

Airlines are waiving change fees, but passengers are limited in terms of when and where they can rebook travel.

"Preparations should be completed as soon as possible," the Weather Prediction Center said in a Thursday update.

From schools closing and events canceling to empty store shelves and emergency declarations, communities are scrambling to prepare for potentially historic weather.

The large winter storm mostly south of Michigan will swing some accumulating snow up into the southeast part of our state. Otherwise it’s a dangerously cold weekend for us. Here’s a look at all of the wintry weather this weekend.

Follow live winter storm updates and breaking weather news as snowstorms are predicted to fall across the U.S. this weekend, affecting states as far south as Texas.