An instant freeze to that degree ... kinda reminds me of that film, The Day After Tomorrow. Freezing temperatures were sucked down from the upper atmosphere by way of tornadoes/vortexes down to the planets surface freezing everthing/everybody in an instant.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG4mwwzT8T4&NR=1
Maybe thats an example of the typical Hollywood movie, entertainment mixed in with some concealed truths ...
Peace
Iain