KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - The first major snowstorm of the season brought deadly road conditions and hundreds of flight cancellations to the Plains and Midwest, where residents said goodbye to last week's balmy air and two towns called off tree lightings and a Christmas parade. The wintry weather struck from Texas and Oklahoma to Michigan, and a blizzard warning was posted in parts of Oklahoma. Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius declared a disaster emergency for 27 counties, freeing up resources to help them.
At least three died in weather-related accidents.
An Oklahoma man was killed Thursday when his vehicle skidded out of control on an icy road and hit an oncoming tractor-trailer. Also Thursday, on Interstate 44 near Rolla, Mo., a motorist involved in an accident earlier in the day was standing near his vehicle when a semitrailer jackknifed and slid into the car, killing him.
"The biggest thing is I-44 is such a mess right now. We're having a bunch of drive-offs where they're just leaving the roadway," said Taylor Hunt of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. "It's just too darn slick. It's going to be a mess out there for a day or two."
On Wednesday, a woman was killed on the Kansas Turnpike just east of Topeka when a car in which she was a passenger lost control and slid into the path of an oncoming vehicle.
At the Nevada Fuel Mart in southwest Missouri, Rose Dozier said most truck drivers heading south on Highway 71 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.
Clay Ender, who works for a heating service company, struggled to get around in the 3 inches of snow that fell overnight in Lubbock, Texas. 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," he said. "They couldn't get any traction."
Flight wasn't much of an option, either.
At Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, more than 400 flights were canceled for Friday, allowing customers more time to change their travel plans. 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.
Joe McBride, a spokesman for Kansas City International Airport, said maintenance crews had put down 110 tons of sand, 30,000 gallons of liquid de-icer and 4 metric tons of granular de-icer by Thursday night.
A few flights had been canceled to cities like Chicago and St. Louis, but the majority remained on time, he said.
"Hopefully we'll dodge the bullet," McBride said. "Looks like we are so far."
Jennifer Stark with the National Weather Service in Topeka 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.
Northern Oklahoma expected to receive 8 to 12 inches of snow, while parts of Illinois prepared for 6 to 12 inches. Varying amounts were also forecast for Missouri, Kansas and Arkansas.
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 Thursday, the storm was moving northeast from Oklahoma on the way to Illinois.
In Springfield, Mo., freezing rain and sleet knocked out power to 15,000 customers, and the forecast called for snow and high winds. In Chicago, 270 salt spreaders stood ready to hit the roads.
"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."
In southeastern Wisconsin, forecasters warned that winds and rain could bring near-blizzard conditions.
The eastern Missouri towns of Leadington and Park Hills canceled plans for two holiday tree lightings and a joint Christmas parade, said Tammi Burns, executive director of their shared Chamber of Commerce.
But she said the communities will celebrate next Thursday, and offered encouragement to those disappointed by the wintry forecast.
"Keep your spirits up," she said. "Be thankful it's getting cold for Christmas."
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On the Net:
Weather Underground: http://www.wunderground.com
National Weather Service: http://iwin.nws.noaa.gov
Intellicast: http://www.intellicast.com
