A cyclist rides a bike along the Pacific Electric Trail in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. against a backdrop of the snow-capped San Gabriel Mountains on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021.
Snow covers cars and Blondo Street east of Northwest Radial Highway in Omaha, Neb., on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021. The Omaha area recorded almost 12 inches of snow the day before.
A lone runner leans into a stiff wind near Lake Michigan on the Northside of Chicago Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021. A major winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow on parts of the middle of the country stretching from central Kansas northeast to Chicago and southern Michigan.
Sarah Lee clears snow off her vehicle in the Edgewater neighborhood, after a snowstorm in Chicago, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021. In the Chicago area, between between 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) and 5 inches (12.7 centimeters) of snow had fallen by early Tuesday.
A major winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow on parts of the middle of the country, disrupting travel and shuttering many schools. But it also brought relief and joy to some residents.
A lone man walks along a frozen section of North Ave. beach on Lake Michigan north of downtown Chicago Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021. A major winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow on parts of the middle of the country stretching from central Kansas northeast to Chicago and southern Michigan.
A winter storm brought a rare sight to Phoenix, Arizona – snowfall. Accompanied by thunder, snow fell in central Phoenix early Monday afternoon in a city better know for its dry heat.
Two people hold hands while walking south on Madison Street toward 27th Avenue in Bellevue, Neb., during a winter storm warning on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021.
Up to a foot of snow fell in Southern California's mountains as the first in a series of storms brought real winter weather after weeks of sporadic rain that did little to ease drought. Winter weather is expected further north later this week.
Harold Holmes clears a path on the sidewalk at his neighbor's house using a snow blower on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021, in Flint, Mich. Holmes has lived in the College Cultural neighborhood for 44 years.
A woman walks on North Ridge Boulevard near West Birchwood Avenue in Rogers Park after more than three inches of snow fell during a winter storm that moved through the Chicago area overnight, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021.
Traffic passes a sign warning of a winter storm, Monday, Jan. 25, 2021, in Des Moines, Iowa. A major winter storm is expected to blanket a large swath of the middle of the country with snow Monday and disrupt travel as more than a foot of snow falls in some areas.
Pedestrians cross a snow covered street, Monday, Jan. 25, 2021, in downtown Des Moines, Iowa. A major winter storm is expected to blanket a large swath of the middle of the country with snow Monday and disrupt travel as more than a foot of snow falls in some areas.
This photo provided by Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, MMSA shows a snow-covered Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, in Mammoth Lakes, Calif. on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021. The latest in a series of storms left California mountains frosted in snow Monday, shutting down highway passes due to dangerous conditions.
Zarin Taylor walks his two Great Danes, Dottie and Terrabella near Lake Michigan on the Northside of Chicago Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021. A major winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow on parts of the middle of the country stretching from central Kansas northeast to Chicago and southern Michigan.
A pedestrian walks down a snow covered sidewalk, Monday, Jan. 25, 2021, in downtown Des Moines, Iowa. A major winter storm is expected to blanket a large swath of the middle of the country with snow Monday and disrupt travel as more than a foot of snow falls in some areas.
A man shovels the sidewalk near North Ridge Boulevard and West Birchwood Avenue in Rogers Park after more than three inches of snow fell during a winter storm that moved through the Chicago area overnight, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021.
Wendy Lacina shovels her driveway with a neighbor's help on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021 in Valley Junction, Iowa. Lacina, 53, is scheduled to undergo eye surgery in February. "Even in this weather, I would always wear my sunglasses. Today I thought, 'It's not sunny out — Let the cold hit the eye, maybe it'll help it,'" Lacina joked. "I got nothing to lose."
In this Saturday, Jan. 23, 2021, photo provided by the California Highway Patrol-West Valley, authorities work the scene of an accident after a hail storm on Malibu Canyon Road in Malibu, Calif. A hail storm struck the Santa Monica Mountains on Saturday, prompting the California Highway Patrol to warn drivers to slow down after officers responded to a few rollover accidents on Malibu Canyon. Up to a foot of snow fell in Southern California's mountains as the first in a series of storms move through California, bringing real winter weather after weeks of sporadic rain that has done little to ease drought.
In this Saturday, Jan. 23, 2021, photo provided by the California Highway Patrol-West Valley, authorities work the scene of an accident after a hail storm on Malibu Canyon Road in Malibu, Calif. A hail storm struck the Santa Monica Mountains on Saturday, prompting the California Highway Patrol to warn drivers to slow down after officers responded to a few rollover accidents on Malibu Canyon. Up to a foot of snow fell in Southern California's mountains as the first in a series of storms move through California, bringing real winter weather after weeks of sporadic rain that has done little to ease drought.
A pickup truck sits on the side of eastbound I-480 after an accident on slick roads on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021, in Omaha, Neb. The area is under a winter storm warning.
A woman plows the sidewalk near North Ridge Boulevard and West Birchwood Avenue in Rogers Park after more than three inches of snow fell during a winter storm that moved through the Chicago area overnight, Tuesday morning, Jan. 26, 2021.
A lone man walks along a frozen section of North Ave. beach on Lake Michigan north of downtown Chicago Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021. A major winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow on parts of the middle of the country stretching from central Kansas northeast to Chicago and southern Michigan.
A man shields himself from the rain with an umbrella as he walks along with a child during a rainy and foggy winter afternoon at the Ocean City boardwalk in Ocean City, N.J.
A pedestrian crosses a snow covered street, Monday, Jan. 25, 2021, in downtown Des Moines, Iowa. A major winter storm is expected to blanket a large swath of the middle of the country with snow Monday and disrupt travel as more than a foot of snow falls in some areas.
Tom Giamalva, owner of Palace Show Services, clears away snow from the sidewalk in front of his business on North Main Street on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021, after a snowstorm in Rockford, Ill. Many schools and businesses closed as the storm moved across the Midwest and officials urged drivers to stay off the roads.
Nassa Perez, Lupe Rodriquez, Marcos Montenegro work in the remains of the home belonging to Ezekiel Calero, on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021, which was completely destroyed by a powerful tornado that struck Fultondale, Ala. on Monday. The men are working to help recover belongings from the destroyed home.
A pedestrian crosses a snow covered street, Monday, Jan. 25, 2021, in downtown Des Moines, Iowa. A major winter storm is expected to blanket a large swath of the middle of the country with snow Monday and disrupt travel as more than a foot of snow falls in some areas.
Retired firefighter Clyde Crump yells for help while working at the home of his daughter and son-in-law on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021, after it was destroyed by a tornado that hit Fultondale, Ala. The family survived by huddling in a basement storm shelter.
A United Airlines jetliner is sprayed with de-icing fluid while passing by a line of snow removal equipment on the way to a runway as a winter storm sweeps over the intermountain West Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021, at Denver International Airport in Denver. Forecasters predict that the fast-moving storm could leave up to a foot of snow in some parts of the region before giving way to a front packing warmer temperatures for the rest of the week.
Brothers of the Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity pull their friends on mattresses along the street in front of the UNL Union during a winter storm in downtown Lincoln, Neb. on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A major winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow on parts of the middle of the country while another system blanketed areas of the Southwest, disrupting travel for a second consecutive day Tuesday and shuttering many schools.
Several coronavirus testing sites closed Monday and Tuesday in Nebraska and Iowa, as both states saw 12 to 15 inches (30.5 to 38.1 centimeters) of snow in places. At least 4 inches (10 centimeters) of snow was expected through Tuesday across most of an area stretching from central Kansas northeast to Chicago and southern Michigan.
National Weather Service meteorologist Taylor Nicolaisen, who is based near Omaha, said up to 15 inches (38 centimeters) was reported in spots between York, Nebraska, and Des Moines, Iowa. He said it’s uncommon for the region to get more than a foot of snow from a single storm, and it has been decades since some cities saw this much.
“A lot of people tend to misremember snow events — especially from when you were a kid. Everything felt like a foot of snow when you were a kid,” Nicolaisen said. “The snow drifts were literally higher than your head when you were a kid, but that’s because you were 2 1/2 feet tall.”
The storm made travel treacherous in places as wind-whipped snow piled up. Interstates were temporarily closed in western Nebraska and in Wisconsin near Milwaukee because of crashes, and scores of flights were canceled at airports across the region. Officials urged drivers to stay off the roads.
In Wisconsin, the weather service predicted up to 10 inches (25.4 centimeters) of snow could fall in the Milwaukee area, with the highest totals along Lake Michigan.
Wind gusts of 15 mph (24 kph) to 25 mph (40 kph) were reported across southern Wisconsin, creating drifting snow, reduced visibilities and complicating snow removal efforts, said Andy Boxell, a meteorologist with the weather service’s office in Sullivan, Wisconsin.
In the Chicago area, more than 6 inches (15.24 centimeters) had already fallen by Tuesday afternoon and forecasters predicted up to 8 inches (20.3 centimeters) or more would fall in some areas before the storm ended Tuesday evening.
The last comparable snowfall hit the area in November 2018, when 8.4 inches (21.3 centimeters) fell.
Many schools and businesses across the Midwest closed for a second day Tuesday as crews worked to dig out after the storm.
Omaha had all 115 of its own plows and 300 contractors out Tuesday working around the clock to clear the streets in Nebraska’s biggest city, but Assistant Public Works Director Todd Pfitzer cautioned that the effort will take some time to complete.
“We are asking for a little patience,” Pfitzer told the Omaha World-Herald.
In West Des Moines, Iowa, Chris Borsberry said he needed four-wheel drive to make it into the Fairfield Inn & Suites where he works, and it took him twice as long as normal. Once at the hotel, Borsberry said he had to shovel the sidewalk seven times because it kept getting covered until the snow finally stopped.
“I got excited about that because it meant I only had one more shovel pass to do,” said Borsberry, 45.
In the South, one person was dead and at least 30 others were injured after a tornado carved a 10-mile-long (16 kilometer) path of destruction north of Birmingham, Alabama, on Monday night, leaving the area with crumpled buildings and downed trees.
In the Southwest, more than a foot of snow fell in the mountains of Southern California, Nevada and Arizona. Icy conditions in mountains north of Los Angeles shut Interstate 5 in Tejon Pass and State Route 58 in Tehachapi Pass.
A storm buried northern Arizona in snow while sending flurries to the outskirts of Las Vegas and Phoenix. Preliminary snowfall reports from the latest storm included 14.2 inches (36 centimeters) at the Flagstaff airport and 16 inches (40.6 centimeters) at Payson between Sunday night and late Monday, the weather service said.
Most of Nevada was bracing for another series of powerful storms that generated a rare blizzard warning along with a forecast for as much as 6 feet (2 meters) of snow and wind gusting over 100 mph (160 kph) in the mountains above Lake Tahoe by early Friday. At lake level, the weather service expects 2 to 4 feet (61-122 centimeters) of snow with winds gusting to 50 mph (80 kph).
“Travel could be near impossible or even paralyzed with near-zero visibility through Friday morning,” the service said.
Another major storm was approaching the coast with the potential to bring 10 to 15 inches (25.40 to 38.1 centimeters) of rain to central California and dump several feet of snow across the Sierra Nevada mountains over the next three days. That could lead to flash floods and debris flows — which can carry massive boulders, trees and other objects — to areas north and south of San Francisco Bay. Evacuation orders were in effect for areas of fire-scarred Santa Cruz County and evacuation warnings were issued in San Mateo County.
