In brief
A powerful winter storm wreaked havoc over the Thanksgiving weekend, particularly across the Midwest and Northeast regions of the U.S. Utility crews are racing to restore power to over 6,000 customers in Wisconsin, where an accumulation of snow led to numerous outages. The impact of the storm extended into Iowa with disruptions at airports, hazardous travel conditions, and church services canceled in Michigan. More snow is expected in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast areas in the coming days.
Utility crews worked to restore power Sunday to thousands of people in Wisconsin, the consequence of a weekend storm in the Great Lakes region that brought down power lines, while a wintry mix of rain and snow developed in the Northeast.
The airport in Des Moines, Iowa, remained closed Sunday morning, a major travel day at the end of the Thanksgiving holiday. A Delta Connection flight from Detroit slid off an icy runway Saturday night. Authorities said no injuries were reported, and passengers were transported to the terminal by bus.
Hundreds of churches in western Michigan told worshippers to stay home or watch services online. Up to 12 inches (about 30 centimeters) of snow has fallen since Saturday in areas close to Lake Michigan.
In Wisconsin, We Energies reported more than 6,000 power outages, with over half in Milwaukee and South Milwaukee. Mark Paladino said on Facebook that he was shoveling snow Sunday when his apartment complex lost power in Fredonia. Others reported sagging power lines under the weight of heavy, wet snow.
In Iowa, gusty winds on Sunday were blowing snow back onto roads, which extended hazardous travel conditions, according to the National Weather Service.
“We did have areas of Iowa and Illinois that saw over one foot of snow,” including 15 inches (38 centimeters) in Fort Dodge, Iowa, said meteorologist Andrew Orrison.
He stated that while snow in the Great Lakes region is tapering off, a new storm is on the way to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, with up to a foot of snow expected by Tuesday. “The good news is that it does not look like the major cities at this point are going to be looking at any significant snowfall,” Orrison mentioned.
