“We are in it now.”
That’s how a state trooper with the Kansas Highway Patrol described the scene as ice shut down lengthy stretches of Interstate 70 in the state and triggered wrecks all along the way. It’s just the beginning of a major winter storm’s impact on tens of millions from the Plains and Midwest to the mid-Atlantic.
At least 60 million people are under winter weather alerts; they’re facing not just ice, but heavy snow and freezing rain that could cause widespread power outages in bitterly cold temperatures.
The system has been named Winter Storm Blair by The Weather Channel. Here’s the latest news as we track the storm:
(6:50 a.m. ET) Where Are Blizzard Warnings In Effect?
From weather.com senior meteorologist Christopher Dolce:
Blizzard warnings are in effect for parts of Kansas, northwest Missouri and far southeast Nebraska. The warnings include the Kansas City, Wichita and Topeka metro areas, where the combination of heavy snowfall, strong winds and low visibility might reach blizzard criteria at times into early Monday.
See our more detailed forecast here.
(7:10 a.m. ET) Stretches of I-70 Shutdown Due To Ice
Transportation officials in north central Kansas urged people to stay at home as crews tried to treat roads covered in ice late Saturday. Parts of Interstate 70 were closed in places like Ellsworth, Lincoln, Saline, Dickinson and Geary.