SOUTH BEND — Michiana woke to very dangerous temperatures Friday morning. At 6 a.m. the air temperature was 8 degrees below zero in South Bend. A case of frost bite or hypothermia can potentially happen in a matter of minutes.

Two women were recently found dead in or near their LaPorte County homes. One died from hypothermia because her heat wasn't on. The other couldn't get inside her home because the door latch was broken.

Here's what you need to look for with hypothermia:
- Extreme shivering
- Exhaustion
- Confusion
- Memory loss
- Slurred speech
- Drowsiness
- Bright red skin.

There are also symptoms for frost bite:
- Grayish-yellow skin
- Skin feels firm or waxy
- Area of frost bite will be numb

If you experience these symptoms yourself or you see somebody with them, you should call 911 immediately.

When the weather gets this cold your furnace at home may have a hard time keeping up. The Center for Disease Control recommends using a fireplace or wood stove to help keep things warm.

However, you should make sure the flue is open and well ventilated in your fireplace. The CDC also recommends using a space heater indoors, but not close to furniture or water.

You should also be careful to turn off space heaters or wood burning stoves if you're leaving your home for any amount of time.

Just last month, a man and his 6-year-old grandson died in LaPorte after their wood burning stove caught fire.