One thing that makes this storm a big deal is the very cold weather behind it.
Ice is going to stay ice for many days.
Snow is not going anywhere for many days.
While folks in the northern tier of the country are used to it this will hit places that experience those conditions very rarely.
It’s the ice aspect of this that makes it so unusual and likely deadly.
And the size of it is pretty much unprecedented.
I cannot remember any other storm with an ice storm potential that covers this massive amount of area.