The offers came as the nation shivered from the unrelenting march of a massive swath of bitterly cold air. Wind chill warnings, watches, or advisories were in place for about 190 million people Wednesday, the Weather Channel reported, all the way from Montana to Maine to Florida.

By Thursday morning, the National Weather Service predicts that 87.2% of the country will see below- freezing temperatures.

The snowstorms Tuesday that dropped 3-6 inches on much of the Midwest and East, closing schools and snarling traffic, had mostly passed into history. Wednesday's woes included near-record, sub-freezing temperatures made worse by 30-mph winds.

On Interstate 80 in western Pennsylvania, three people died and 30 were hurt Wednesday afternoon in an 18-vehicle wreck blamed on a lake-effect whiteout.

The "feels like" temperatures could flirt with 50 degrees below zero in parts of Minnesota, the Weather Channel reported. Six Marcus Theatre locations in the Twin Cities offered the hot chocolate to lure locals from their homes. The Minnesota Timberwolves were hoping their cut-rate tickets would help fill some of the Target Center's 19,000-plus seats.