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Over 300,000 left in darkness while 13 dead as winter storms mercilessly batter the country

'It feels helpless right, and it's kind of a frustrating type of helpless,' a man stuck in the San Bernardino mountains for two weeks said

FRANKFORT, KENTUCKY: Thousand of Americans were left in the darkness while many others were badly affected by the winter storms that continue to batter the country. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency on Friday, March 3, due to the situation.

As of Saturday, March 4, Beshear announced five people were killed across multiple counties and that another had died indirectly from the winter storm. The death toll from the storm now stands at 13. The governor also warned people that it could take days to restore power after over 300,000 people across Kentucky and Michigan are without power. "Very significant widespread damage and is going to take days to get power back up in some places," he said.

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'Help us!'

Due to the dangerous winds, residents in Franklin County, between Lexington and Louisville could "feel the walls moving." Citizens in Southern California were forced to write "Help us" in the snow after being trapped for more than a week in a feet of snow. "It feels helpless right, and it's kind of a frustrating type of helpless," said a man who has been stuck in the San Bernardino mountains for nearly two weeks, according to Daily Mail.  

The state has been battered with high winds, snow, tornadoes, floods and thunderstorms. Around seven tornadoes have been reported across Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas since Thursday, March 2. Arkansas has witnessed more than a half-a-foot of rain. Oklahoma and Ohio were reportedly under flood alerts on Friday. Winds in Texas ripped the roof of a grocery store north of Dallas. "The whole building started shaking...The whole ceiling is gone," a person told KDFW-TV, adding "It got really crazy."

'We were going to die!'

A Lake Arrowhead resident posted a video on Twitter begging officials to provide resources, including baby formula and insulin for residents affected by the winter storm. California officials reported the state has received as high as 10ft of snowfall. Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in 13 counties including San Bernardino, where two teenaged boys were trapped in the snow for two weeks.

"They've told us, 'We were already convinced we were going to die,'" Cesar Ramirez, the father of one of the two boys, told KTLA. The region where the boys were trapped was buried under snow, with some places receiving nearly 50in.