Blizzard hits Northern Plains, deep freeze next

updated 12:00 p.m. ET Jan. 12, 2009

BISMARCK, N.D. - A fast-moving blizzard brought snow and high winds to North Dakota on Monday, closing schools and causing more headaches for residents still trying to dig out from a record snowfall last month.

And, forecasters said a blast of cold air was on the way that could send the thermometer as low as 30 below zero.

Travel was discouraged in the central and western parts of North Dakota because of drifting snow, whipped up by high winds, made the visibility almost zero and left snow drifts on roadways. No injuries were reported.

The Minot area got 6 inches of snow, on top of about a foot late last week, while Bismarck picked up another 4 inches.

Wind gusts of around 60 mph were reported in southwestern North Dakota and 51 mph in Bismarck. Eastern Montana was rattled with gusts of up to 70 mph, meteorologist Bill Abeling said, but that area did not have as much snow.

Iowa gets blizzard warning
Strong winds blew through South Dakota, and snow was moving into northwest Iowa. A blizzard warning was posted in the Des Moines area from Monday night until early Tuesday.

The snow is to be followed by a blast of cold air, dropping temperatures to around 30 below zero in the eastern part of the state, forecasters said Monday. Wind chill factors could hit 47 below, they said.

"We'd like to figure out a way to send the bad weather back up north," Abeling said.

Bismarck, Fargo and Grand Forks all broke snow records for December, each with more than 30 inches.

The bitter cold that was stalking the upper Plains was expected to bring bone-chilling misery to the East by week's end.

Residents in the Atlanta area could see temperatures in the high teens by the end of the week, forecasters said. And in Maine, where overnight lows early Monday dipped to as much as 22 below, even colder weather was in the offing by Thursday.

Weekend storms
Meanwhile, residents of the Midwest and Northeast dug out after their own tussles with weekend storms.

Most residents in New England heeded the authorities' warnings to stay off roads after the storm dumped up to 9 inches of snow in some areas in Massachusetts and sleet and freezing rain across Rhode Island. Some communities declared snow emergencies to help cleanup crews plow streets.

In New Hampshire, three buses and two tractor-trailer rigs were among 59 vehicles that crashed on snowy Interstate 93, sending a dozen people to hospitals Sunday morning and temporarily shutting down a stretch of the highway's northbound lanes.

None of the injuries were life threatening, but it took emergency crews about an hour to remove one man from a car wedged under the back of a tractor trailer, Derry Fire Battalion Chief Jack Webb said.

MORE FROM WEATHER

Weather Section Front

Rains hitting Gulf Coast ahead of Ida Salvadoran town hit by landslide buries dead   Tornado rakes Oregon coastal town 200,000 see homes flooded in Mexico   Watch 3-day national forecast Drought worsens water woes in Venezuela   Stormy messes in Australia, Canada Weather Section Front   Add Weather headlines to your news reader: