The cold has killed the young and the old. It has claimed lives from southern Texas to northern Ohio. And authorities expect the toll to rise in the coming days, with frigid weather lingering, hundreds of thousands without electricity and millions without clean water.

With millions of Texans grappling with water restrictions, spiking energy bills and other havoc left behind by last week's winter storm, White House officials said Sunday that President Joe Biden is "eager" to visit and could head there as soon as this week.