Ice, Snow, Winds Hit Central US

Winter storm closes stretches of highways
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Dec 26, 2023 4:10 PM CST
Ice, Snow, Winds Hit Central US
Ice coats a vehicle in Bismarck, North Dakota, on Tuesday.   (AP Photo/Jack Dura)

From an ice storm in North Dakota that is sealing windows shut to blizzard conditions in Colorado that caused scores of airport delays and cancellations, a winter storm pummeled much of the central US on Tuesday. "The heavy snow conditions in the Plains should be slowly alleviating today, but it'll be very slow. Even when the snow ends, the high winds should keep visibility near zero—whiteout conditions—for a decent part of today," said Weather Prediction Center forecaster David Roth. Blizzard warnings were in effect mid-Tuesday for western portions of South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas, along with eastern portions of Colorado and Wyoming, the AP reports.

Laura Schmidt-Dockter wore ice spikes on her shoes as she walked outside to the trash can in Bismarck, North Dakota. Her driveway was sheer ice, she said. A neighbor took to the street on ice skates. "It's actually not bad," the neighbor quipped as he skated by, in a short video that Schmidt-Dockter posted to social media. At Denver International Airport, there were 200 delays and 18 cancellations as of midday Tuesday, according to the tracking website FlightAware. Blizzard conditions on Interstate 70, from Denver to Kansas, closed the highway early Tuesday, but it reopened later in the morning. Ice storm warnings and winter weather advisories remained in place in South Dakota, North Dakota, and northwestern Minnesota, per the AP.

On Monday, one person was killed and three others were injured in Kansas, when the driver of a pickup truck lost control on snow and ice and collided head-on with a sport utility vehicle 5 miles west of Larned, according to the State Patrol. The same day, winds gusted to 67mph in Oakes, North Dakota, said the National Weather Service. The ice storm has affected highways throughout eastern North Dakota, with Interstate 29 from Grand Forks to the Canadian border closed until Tuesday afternoon, and no travel advised in south-central parts of the state. No major power outages were reported. Still, the weather service reminded people about the fire risk from candles or space heaters. Portable generators should be kept outside and at least 20 feet away from doors, windows, and garages to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.

(More winter storm stories.)

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