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At Least 2 Die In Plains Snowstorm

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The Associated Press

Published: December 23, 2007

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - A blinding snowstorm blew across the Plains on Saturday, causing at least two deaths and dozens of injuries in numerous multi-car pileups and forcing authorities to close portions of several major highways.

One person died in a chain-reaction pileup involving as many as 80 vehicles, including several tractor-trailer rigs, on Interstate 40 in Amarillo, Texas, police said.

Many were holiday travelers, including some families with small children not dressed for the cold weather, police Sgt. Shawn McLeland. Other drivers spotted them and opened Christmas presents to provide warmer clothing for the children.

The tangle of twisted cars and trucks shut down the interstate for most of the day. Authorities think the pileup was caused by blowing snow and the resulting zero visibility.

In northeast Kansas, at least one person was killed in a 30-car pileup on Interstate 70, prompting authorities to close a 40-mile stretch. The pileup occurred about 30 miles west of Topeka.

The fierce snowstorm caused another wreck involving 20 to 40 vehicles, including three tractor-trailer rigs, on Interstate 29 in St. Joseph in western Missouri. Police closed about 100 miles of I-29 to the Iowa state line.

The Plains storm also blew heavy snow across Oklahoma and parts of Nebraska and Iowa, a region still recovering from a severe ice storm early two weeks ago that knocked out electricity for hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses.

Wind was blowing at sustained speeds of 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 45 mph in Oklahoma, where U.S. 412 near Mooreland in western Oklahoma was closed after 15 to 20 cars slid off the road or were involved in collisions, authorities said.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said a six-car collision on U.S. 64 in the state's northwest corner involved an ambulance that was carrying victims from the scene of another accident. Low visibility forced the closure of some highways.

The storm also affected flights at airports in the Midwest, as the busy pre-Christmas weekend travel was getting under way. The delays rippled across the country, delaying flights in the New York region.

In Chicago, flights in and out of O'Hare International Airport were delayed an average of two hours, and about 100 flights were canceled, airport spokesman Gregg Cunningham said.

Flights departing from Newark Liberty International Airport for O'Hare were delayed about three hours, as were flights to the Dallas area.

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