A state of emergency was declared in the US Midwest over this Thanksgiving holiday weekend as a blizzard dumped snow across several states yesterday causing over 800 flight cancellations and road closures.
Flights departing the US were also put on hold, pushing the affected flights up to around 1,200.
The areas worst hit were Chicago, Illinois and Kansas City, Missouri, and snow and strong winds were reported in Nebraska, Missouri, and Iowa. And the storm isn’t over – it is expected to also hit Michigan and Indiana.
Kansas Governor Jeff Colyer issued the state of emergency for his state where a big stretch of Interstate 70, which spans most of the state, was closed between Junction City and WaKeeney.
In eastern Illinois snow fell at around 2 inches per hour, and as much as 10 inches of snow came down around O’Hare and Chicago’s Midway Airport.
In eastern Nebraska, part of Interstate 80 between Lincoln and Omaha was closed Sunday morning because of multiple accidents after snow blanketed that area. In Missouri, a portion of Interstate 29 was shut down near the Iowa border.
Meteorologist Todd Kluber for the National Weather Service said, “It’s going to be messy.” Farther in the northwest there was a prediction for 12 inches of snow with winds of up to 50 miles per hour – the perfect mix for a blizzard. Kluber predicted rain will give way to heavy snowfall and “near whiteout conditions” causing dangerous travel conditions.
