CLOSE Skip in Skip x Embed x Share After a winter storm that passed through St. Louis, some drivers sat on highways and interstates for hours in icy and snowy conditions wondering when they would begin to move. KSDK 
 
 Blinding snow bombarded much of the nation's midsection Thursday, causing whiteout conditions and making major roadways all but impassable. 
 
 Westlake Ace Hardware employee Kenneth Curiel, right, helps customer Marcus Dunn load six 40-pound bags of ice melt into this van in Wichita, Kan., on Feb. 20. (Photo: Mike Hutmacher, AP) Story Highlights More than a foot of snow has fallen in parts of Kansas 
 
 Ice is adding to the Midwest's woes 
 
 The storm's remnants could blast New England on Saturday 
 
 A powerful storm roared across the nation's midsection Thursday, threatening 20 states and 60 million residents in its path. On Friday morning, the storm was moving northeast. 
 
 Parts of Nebraska, Oklahoma and Kansas have been blasted with more than a foot of snow, with sleet and freezing rain exacerbating treacherous conditions, the National Weather Service said. 
 
 Winter storm warnings and advisories were issued from eastern Colorado to southwestern Virginia. Officials feared the storm would be the worst in the central U.S. since the Groundhog Day blizzard in 2011, which killed dozens and left hundreds of thousands powerless. 
 
 Wichita was hit with 14 inches of snow, the city's second-largest snowstorm on record So far, Hays, Kan., has seen the most snow from this storm, with 17 inches. Other areas of the Midwest could see even more snow before the storm slides east, primed to do more damage there. 
 
 A whiteout was reported on the Kansas Turnpike, and 90 miles of Interstate 70 was shut down. 
 
 Missouri's Kansas City International Airport shut down, and almost 200 flights had been canceled, according to flight-tracking service FlightAware. Cancellations also were piling up at other airports in the storm's path in St. Louis, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston,Chicago O'Hare, Denver, Omaha, Wichita and Minneapolis/St. Paul. 
 
 FLIGHTS: Delays, cancellations pile up 
 
 Some solace: Most big airlines had issued flexible rebooking policies for fliers with flights to, from or through the central United States. 
 
 Most schools in Kansas and Missouri, and many in neighboring states, were closed. Legislatures shut down in Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Nebraska and Iowa. 
 
 
 
 Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback closed executive offices, except for essential personnel. "If you don't have to get out, just really, please, don't do it," Brownback said. 
 
 Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency statewide as a mixture of snow, sleet, and ice paralyzed the state. Some areas were projected to get more than 10 inches of snow. 
 
 Up to 9 inches of snow were expected in central Iowa, between the Minnesota and Missouri state borders. Other parts of Iowa were expected to get between 3 to 7 inches of snow. 
 
 CLOSE Skip in Skip x Embed x Share The huge snowstorm that blanketed the Midwest on Thursday is now moving into the Upper Midwest. The storm dropped a foot or more of snow. It's blamed for at least two deaths and hundreds of traffic accidents. (Feb. 22) AP 
 
 Grand Island in south central Nebraska reported 10 inches of snow. 
 
 In Iowa, snow was expected to fall at up to 2 inches per hour with wind gusts reaching 30 mph during the peak of the storm Thursday night, said the weather service's Roger Vachalek. Des Moines was expecting 8 inches or more. 
 
 In Arkansas, an emergency preparedness drill using mock ice storm and involving hospitals and emergency personnel in Baxter and Marion counties was canceled because officials had to deal with a real ice storm. 
 
 PHOTOS: Send us your snow photos 
 
 (Photo: Travis Heying, AP) 
 
 The storm brought heavy rain, strong winds — but also much-needed moisture — for parts of the drought-scorched Plains. 
 
 "In the city you hear they don't want the snow and that sort of thing, and I am thinking, `Yes, we do,' and they don't realize that we need it," said farmer Diane McReynolds of Woodson, Kan. 
 
 "We have to have it or their food cost in the grocery store is going to go very high," she said. "We have to have this. We pray a lot for it." 
 
 The storm will weaken somewhat Friday as it slides east, forecasters said. Mainly morning snow of about 3-5 inches is expected around the western Great Lakes, Weather Channel meteorologist Chris Dolce reported, with cities such as Minneapolis, Milwaukee and Detroit seeing the greatest impact. 
 
 Farther to the south, freezing rain and sleet is likely in parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, where up to 1/4 of an inch of ice could accumulate. Along the Gulf Coast, severe storms are possible in far southern Mississippi, southern Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle, according to the Storm Prediction Center. 
 
 A new storm could form Saturday along the East Coast from the remnants of the winter storm, bringing significant snow from upstate New York to southern New England, Dolce said. 
 
 The heavy, wet snow could cause power outages, and enough snow could fall in Boston to set an all-time record for snowiest February ever. The record was in 1969, when 41.3 inches of snow piled up. So far this month, Boston has seen 32 inches of snow. 
 
 Contributing: Ben Mutzabaugh; Brandie Piper, KDSK.com; Jens Manuel Krogstad, The Des Moines Register; Alia E. Dastagir in McLean, Va.; Associated Press 
 
 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/156mDnX ||||| Story highlights Weather responsible for 10 deaths, authorities say 
 
 Some areas might see another foot of snow 
 
 Storm has left thousands of passengers stranded after flight cancellations 
 
 It also triggered multicar pileups and other traffic nightmares across Midwest 
 
 The powerful winter storm that moved across the United States this week, dropping record-breaking snow and spinning dangerous tornadoes on Christmas, isn't over yet. 
 
 It dumped more snow on the Northeast on Thursday and left behind bitterly cold weather, especially in the South. 
 
 While the Northeast is used to dealing with heavy snow in late December, some parts of the country haven't seen this kind of weather in decades. Canadians were preparing for the white stuff, too. 
 
 "If you are in Atlantic Canada ... you are just getting going. If you are in New York City the cold air is coming down the Hudson (River)," CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said. "If you are off to the east, you're still going to get snow in Maine on up into New Brunswick. And that snow could be heavy at times. We're talking about another foot in some spots." 
 
 Send us your photos and video of ice, snow, storms and sleet. 
 
 Residents of Little Rock, Arkansas, awoke to a frosty 20-degree morning after Tuesday's record-breaking 9 inches of snow -- the highest Christmas snowfall in 86 years. To navigate the treacherous roads, the Arkansas National Guard deployed four-wheel-drive ambulances to help those needing medical attention in the state's hardest-hit counties. 
 
 5 photos: 5 photos: Tornado damage – Workers clean up tornado damage near Troy, Alabama, on Wednesday, December 26, 2012. Hide Caption 1 of 5 5 photos: Tornado damage – These homes were destroyed by a tornado in the Brantley Mobile Home Park near Troy, Alabama, on December 26. Hide Caption 2 of 5 5 photos: Tornado damage – A woman takes a photo of a trailer home destroyed by a tornado near Troy, Alabama, on December 26. Hide Caption 3 of 5 5 photos: Tornado damage – The storm winds knocked down trees, destorying cars and homes near Troy, Alabama, on December 26. Hide Caption 4 of 5 5 photos: Tornado damage – Home owner Mike Nichols surveys damage caused by a tornado that hit his home near Troy, Alabama, on December 26. Hide Caption 5 of 5 
 
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 More than 134,000 customers were without power Thursday. 
 
 The heavy snow and ice overwhelmed trees across Arkansas, where forests cover half the land. 
 
 "It was very quiet and still outside, except for the crashing of trees in the nearby forest as they succumbed to the weight of a quarter-inch of ice and 10 inches of snow," said Lanny Sutton, who lives in Cabot, outside Little Rock. "The snow is beginning to melt. It's coming off the trees now. We have three trees in the yard with at least two or three limbs broken off each one." 
 
 Since it swept across the country this week, the storm has killed 10 people, including two children in Arkansas and an 81-year-old Alabama man. He died Thursday of injuries he suffered when a tree fell on his house in Georgiana on Christmas, an official with the Alabama Emergency Management Agency said. 
 
 A 42-year-old man and a 26-year-old woman in Evansville, Indiana, died Wednesday after wrecking the scooter they were on and being hit by a truck, Police Sgt. Karen Kajmowicz said. 
 
 In Pennsylvania, a motorist who stepped out of his car and was apparently going to the aid of a stranded drive was stuck and killed by another vehicle on Interstate 78 in Lehigh County, authorities said. 
 
 As the storm moves across the Northeast, it will deliver plenty of snow in northern New England through Friday, including upstate New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. As much as 2 feet of snow is possible in central Maine, leading to hazardous roads, forecasters said. 
 
 In addition, "Strong winds will cause blowing snow to create potentially even taller snowdrifts," Schneider said. "Travelers across New England need to pay close attention to changing weather conditions and low visibility." 
 
 Caleb Clark, a CNN iReporter in Brattleboro in southern Vermont, called it a 'classic snowstorm.' " 
 
 "(It is) a nice and fluffy New England snow, not too dangerous and you could walk around without mittens," he said. 
 
 Clark measured 6 inches of snow -- with more falling -- on top of his car just after 1 p.m. 
 
 The storm left thousands of passengers stranded after flight cancellations. 
 
 On Thursday, more than 700 flights were scrubbed, according to the flight-tracking website FlightAware.com. The site, which doesn't distinguish between flights canceled for weather and those called off because of mechanical reasons, said airlines canceled more than 1,700 flights Wednesday. 
 
 Greyhound nixed six routes in the Northeast because of Thursday's snow. 
 
 Winter storm strands travelers 
 
 Here's the damage that the winter storm has brought so far: 
 
 Traffic nightmares 
 
 The storm triggered multivehicle pileups and other traffic nightmares across in the Midwest. In Ohio, nursing student Carrie Winger saw the aftermath of a fatal wreck in Cincinnati on Wednesday, which left one woman dead. She said she shared a photo of the crash site with CNN iReport to warn other drivers to slow down. 
 
 "We saw folks driving too fast and too close repeatedly the entire trip today," Winger said. "As soon as we passed this, people were speeding again. They apparently did not realize they had just passed a very immediate and very close encounter of a fatality. It could have been them." 
 
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 Even drivers in the Northeast had a tough time navigating the icy conditions. Jim DeMarino said a normally four-hour drive from Pittsburgh to northern Virginia took eight hours Wednesday, the day after Christmas. 
 
 DeMarino, who lives in Alexandria, Virginia, submitted photos of what he called a "tricky drive" along highways that were "scattered with abandoned, crashed and disabled vehicles." 
 
 Tornadoes in Alabama, Mississippi 
 
 The same weather system that dumped heavy snow in the Midwest and Northeast spawned as many as 30 tornadoes on Christmas -- some with wind speeds over 100 mph -- across the Southeast. 
 
 Several of Tuesday's powerful twisters struck Alabama. In Mobile County, David Saraceno spotted something ominous as he sped down Interstate 165 on Tuesday. He was traveling with his wife and 1-year-old daughter to visit family when he saw a tornado on the side of the road. His wife videotaped it. 
 
 "It looked like it was about two miles away from us," Saraceno said. "I put the pedal to the floor to try and get out of harm's way, but it seemed to be getting closer and closer." 
 
 Panicked, Saraceno got off the interstate near the town of Chickasaw, drove in a different direction and then turned around to go home. 
 
 "We drove right back into a path of destruction," he said. "It appeared that the tornado turned and came over the interstate about three minutes away from where we would have been if I did not get off the interstate. We saw a roof that must have blown off a house. Cars were pulled to the side of the road. There was a lady whose windows were shattered. It was too close for comfort." 
 
 Winter wonderland in Dallas 
 
 For others, the winter storm system brought a rare white Christmas. 
 
 In Dallas, some residents had to change from short sleeves to winter coats Tuesday, as temperatures plummeted from the 60s to the low 20s in one day. 
 
 "We knew it was going to be a white Christmas in Dallas this year as per the weather advisory, but were not aware it will turn out to be so beautiful and freezing cold," Shail Bhatt said. 
 
 It's not often that Dallas gets more snow than Chicago, but that's what happened this week. "Sometimes we wear shorts on Christmas in Texas," said Chris Purcell, who told CNN there's still plenty of snow on the ground. "We built a snowman and went (sledding) and had a snowball fight ... all the basics."
– Real-live winter in the South? You bet: Unlikely ice storms hammered southern states yesterday, depriving thousands of power, forcing hundreds of flight cancellations, and killing at least five people, CNN reports. It's not over, either: Storms are poised to strike regions from Dallas to Memphis until tomorrow and Arkansas through Monday. The north will also get its share, with sleet or snow hitting central New England through the central Appalachians into today, and blanketing the nation's capital tomorrow. In other details: Dallas/Forth Worth had it worst, canceling nearly 700 flights and the downtown Dallas holiday parade for the first time in 26 years. The storm cut out power for more than 200,000 customers. Temperature swings were shocking: In Hot Springs, Arkansas, a temperate 75-degree day on Wednesday turned into an ice storm yesterday. Most fatalities occurred on icy roads, including the death of Granby, Missouri, Mayor Ronald Arnall, whose car veered off a state highway in southern Missouri and hit a tree, Reuters reports. Oklahoma alone has recorded about 116 storm-related injuries. A new storm struck the Pacific Coast yesterday, dropping pretty heavy snow on Portland. Even Las Vegas might see snow today—up to 2 inches. But it's not so bad by comparison: In northern Europe, a powerful storm with hurricane-force winds kicked up a huge tidal surge and killed 8 people, CBC News reports.