December 1, 2006
AP
Photo: Nine-year-old Jesse Norman pulls a wagon full of snow along a neighborhood street during the season's first snowstorm Friday, Dec. 1, 2006, in Brookfield, Wis. Many schools in the area were closed because of the storm. (AP /Morry Gash)
Midwest, shut down major roads in several states and left hundreds of thousands of people without power and air transport.
The storm also is blamed for at least two deaths.
And more nasty weather was forecasted for Friday. Very gusty winds, as well as some hail, downpours and even tornadoes may be seen along the East Coast from Raleigh, N.C., to Boston. Meanwhile, 12 to 18 inches of snow are expected in parts of Illinois and Missouri.
A blizzard warning was posted in parts of Oklahoma, and Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius declared a disaster emergency for 27 counties, freeing up resources to help them.
A Fed Ex cargo plane arriving Friday morning at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport slipped into the mud off the only open runway, and crews were working to tow it away. There were no injuries, said Wendy Abrams, a spokeswoman for the Chicago Department of Aviation.
The first major snowstorm of the season canceled hundreds of flights and hobbled highways in the Plains and Midwest.
A 50-mile stretch of Interstate 70 in mid-Missouri was shut down, while about 2.4 million customers across central and southern Illinois and parts of Missouri were without power early Friday.
Photo: A car sits in the street covered with snow as Casey Harriston, right, removes the snow from his driveway Friday, Dec. 1, 2006, after more than a foot of snow fell overnight in Columbia, Mo. (AP /L.G. Patterson)
The local FOX News affiliate in St. Louis, Mo., reported that 450,000 people were without power in the metropolitan area there, and that number is expected to grow, as gusty winds, snow and ice down more trees and power lines.
The wintry system struck Thursday from Texas to Michigan.
In the Chicago area, the National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning until noon, predicting six to 12 inches of snow. Winds gusted to over 30 mph as the storm arrived in full by the morning rush hour. The service advised people in central Illinois to avoid traveling, if possible. More than 75 percent of all roads in Illinois are now covered by at least some snow.
"It looks like it's going to get messy," said Tim Halbach, a meteorologist in the Chicago suburb of Romeoville. "There could be times where some areas see 2 inches of snow per hour."
At Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, more than 400 flights scheduled for Friday were canceled Thursday, allowing customers more time to change their travel plans. Hundreds of incoming flights have also been canceled; the airport is down to one runway.
Photo: A Kansas Highway Patrolman stops to help a wrecked motorist in Wichita. (AP)
Laura and Ron Whittingham said early Friday that their United flight to Las Vegas was leaving on time from O'Hare, one of numerous airports where most flights were canceled.
"I guess we're just the lucky ones," Ron Whittingham said. "We are going to Vegas, so that's a good thing, right? We're starting off lucky."
Chicago has enjoyed temperatures in the upper 60s for the past few days, but light coats have been replaced with parkas, and people got out their snow shovels to dig themselves out of the snow. Meanwhile, 270 salt spreaders stood ready to hit the roads.
There was thunder and lightning around Chicago earlier Friday morning, and at least one foot of snow is expected in the Windy City later in the day.
Sleet, snow and freezing rain forced the cancellation of 200 flights out of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and closed some schools. Most Thursday night flights out of Lambert-St. Louis International Airport were canceled.
Crews at Kansas City International Airport put down 110 tons of sand, 30,000 gallons of liquid de-icer and 4 metric tons of granular de-icer by Thursday night.
In southeastern Wisconsin, forecasters warned that winds and rain could bring near-blizzard conditions.
Photo: A resident checks on his vehicles after large tree branches fell on them from the weight of snow and ice in Towanda, Illinois AP/ The Pantagraph)
Snowfall in parts of Oklahoma ranged from 2 inches to nearly a foot, while parts of Illinois prepared for 6 to 12 inches. Varying amounts were forecast for Missouri, Kansas and Arkansas.
High winds hit the Dayton, Ohio, suburb of Vandalia shortly before dawn Friday, knocking down power lines and tearing siding and shingles off homes. Police Chief Doug Knight described the damage as minor and said there were no injuries.
An Oklahoma man was killed Thursday when his vehicle skidded on an icy road and hit an oncoming tractor-trailer. Also Thursday, on Interstate 44 near Rolla, Mo., a motorist involved in an earlier accident was standing near his vehicle when a semitrailer jackknifed and slid into the car, killing him.
"It's just too darn slick. It's going to be a mess out there for a day or two," said Taylor Hunt of the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
At the Nevada Fuel Mart in southwest Missouri, Rose Dozier said most truck drivers heading south stopped early Thursday night. They reported near-zero visibility before the snow began to subside.
"The drivers are all professionals and they're used to it," Dozier said. "They said a lot of cars are not."
In the Texas Panhandle, roads were covered with ice and up to 7 inches of snow.
Photo: Carl South, Mayor of Hallsvile, Mo., cleans off his front walk after Thursday night's snow storm. (AP)
Clay Ender, who works for a heating service company, struggled to get around in the 3 inches of snow that fell overnight in Lubbock. A trip across the city that usually takes 20 minutes stretched to an hour, he said.
"There were so many cars spinning out of control. They couldn't get any traction," he said.
Jennifer Stark with the National Weather Service in Topeka, Kan., said the storm seemed especially impressive because it had been preceded by unseasonably mild weather. Temperatures approached, and in some places eclipsed, record highs earlier in the week.
The system roared through the Northwest and Rockies earlier in the week. Coming on the heels of near-record high temperatures, it rolled through Kansas on Wednesday, coating tree limbs and power lines with half an inch of ice. By Friday, the storm was moving northeast through Illinois on the way to Canada.
The eastern Missouri towns of Leadington and Park Hills put off plans for two holiday tree lightings and a joint Christmas parade, said Tammi Burns, executive director of their shared Chamber of Commerce. She said the communities will celebrate next Thursday.
"Keep your spirits up," she said. "Be thankful it's getting cold for Christmas."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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