A winter storm has caused flight delays and cancellations across the U.S., with airports and airlines issuing warnings and travel advisories as blizzard conditions, feet of snow and high winds are expected across parts of Colorado, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota and Wyoming. The National Weather Service has issued blizzard warnings, winter storm warnings, winter weather advisories and winter storm watches for these states. Airlines, including large carriers like Southwest, United, Delta and American, issued advisories on Wednesday when the worst of the weather was expected to begin. Anyone flying through, in or out of the areas expected to be hitshould check with their airline and their origin and destination airports about possible changes in flight plans. A significant late season #winter storm will impact a large portion of the country from Wyoming and Colorado through the Great Lakes. Up to 2 feet of #snow and strong #winds will create #blizzard conditions. Moderate #FreezingRain is also possible. pic.twitter.com/risGKIWFXU — NWS Weather Prediction Center (@NWSWPC) April 9, 2019 Denver International Airport issued an alert Wednesday morning that said it is "open and prepared for snow and strong winds" but that several airlines have canceled afternoon flights. A few airlines were offering waivers for some travelers likely to be impacted, while others were simply advising that customers contact service representatives. Those waivers often allow ticketholders to change their flights without hefty change fees or to cancel and get a credit with the airline instead. United Airlines United said customers across the Great Plains and Colorado were eligible for their waivers, which were listed online Wednesday morning. Delta Airlines Delta was also offering travelers options when it came to rescheduling or canceling their flights. The airline was allowing flyers to either keep their tickets and see what happened once the storm hit, change their flight without a change fee, or cancel their trip and use the value for a ticket sometime in the future. Southwest Southwest issued a travel advisory warning of disrupted services in Milwaukee, Denver and Minneapolis. Frontier and American also had advisories and alerts on their sites for travelers. The Federal Aviation Administration was also advising travelers to check with their airline before heading to the airport during the storm. American Airlines American had 11 airports in the upper Midwest and seven in Colorado listed on its travel alerts and said that change fees might be waived for those flying into or out of those airports. There are a few stipulations though, flyers couldn't change their cabin or origin and destination cities without paying an extra fee. Airport delays can be found at the FAA's flight delay website and on Flight Aware online. ​<doc-sep>This is the second time in four weeks many of these areas have been hit with severe winter weather Blizzard Dumps 23 Inches of Snow on Midwest & Plains Just Days After Temps Hit Nearly 80 Degrees Over 3.9 million residents of the Plains and the Midwest got a surprise this week, as a rare inland spring snowstorm slammed parts of six states, including Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota and Minnesota. The storm, named Wesley by The Weather Channel, brought dangerous winds, heavy snowfalls, hail risk, downed powerlines, flooding and even thunderstorms and tornado warnings in some areas. Get push notifications with news, features and more. Its mixture of snow and ice created a travel nightmare, leading to traffic accidents and the cancellation of more than 3,000 flights nationwide, NBC News reported. Several stretches of interstate highways were closed on Thursday — including Interstate 80 (in western Nebraska), Interstate 90 (in South Dakota, from Rapid City to Sioux Falls), Interstate 29 (from Sioux Falls in eastern South Dakota to the North Dakota border) and Interstate 70 (from the Kansas border to east of Denver, Colorado). “Roads are becoming impassable,” the National Weather Service said. “Unless you are experiencing an emergency, please stay off the roads.” In Minnesota alone, state patrolmen had responded to at least 213 crashes, CNN reported. Spring Blizzard Rockies Credit: Jacob Byk/The Wyoming Tribune Eagle via AP Spring Blizzard Rockies Credit: Jacob Byk/The Wyoming Tribune Eagle via AP Spring Blizzard Rockies Credit: Jacob Byk/The Wyoming Tribune Eagle via AP This is the second time in four weeks these areas have been hit. Just last month, a bomb cyclone hit many of these same areas, including Colorado, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska. As of late Wednesday, the snowfall totals were staggering and are only expected to climb. Here are the numbers, according to The Weather Channel: Colorado: 9.5 inches in Winter Park 9.5 inches in Winter Park Minnesota: 7 inches near New Prague; 4.2 inches in Minneapolis 7 inches near New Prague; 4.2 inches in Minneapolis Montana: 23 inches at Badger Pass 23 inches at Badger Pass South Dakota: 18 inches in Dupree 18 inches in Dupree Utah: 13 inches at Snowbird Ski Resort 13 inches at Snowbird Ski Resort Wisconsin : 4.5 inches near Wheeler; 3.5 inches in La Crosse : 4.5 inches near Wheeler; 3.5 inches in La Crosse Wyoming: 18 inches near Wheeler; 6 inches in Gillette It happened fast, too, with the snow falling at 3 inches per hour in certain areas, NBC News reported. Strong winds have been just as shocking. In parts of Colorado, 107 mph wind gusts were recorded in Pueblo West, The Weather Channel reported. Texas saw 88 mph wind gusts, while they hit 77 mph in areas of New Mexico and 66 mph in parts of Nevada. Wesley’s center is said to be located in the lower Missouri Valley, The Weather Channel said on Thursday. Days earlier, much of the affected region had been experiencing warmer conditions, CNN reported. Denver, for example, had a recorded temperature of 78 degrees on Tuesday, Weather Underground reported. It’s not just cold weather, either. Wesley brings a threat of dry conditions and wind gusts in the Southwest, which could spark dangerous wildfires, CNN reported. Meanwhile, weather experts have been split as to whether Wesley qualifies as a “bomb cyclone.” According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a bomb cyclone — or bombogenesis — occurs when a cold air mass collides with a warm arm mass, causing the atmospheric pressure of a storm to drop 24 millibars in less than 24 hours.<doc-sep>
Spring may have finally arrived, but the latest reports from the National Weather Service show that the Midwest won’t be experiencing it just yet. Another "bomb cyclone" is on the horizon with Winter Storm Wesley targeting the Rockies and parts of the Great Plains. The latest forecast calls for a winter storm that could produce "heavy snow" buildup and blizzard conditions across the Plains and Midwest starting Tuesday evening. The forecast also warns that the storm could possibly last until Thursday. The current winter storm warnings are being sent out to 10 million people across the regions under greatest threat from the blizzard. However, over 26 million people are also receiving wind warnings. The states under the greatest threat from the winds are Wyoming, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Colorado. Meanwhile, the winter storm warnings have been largely centered on Nebraska, Minnesota and South Dakota. Parts of South Dakota could see 30 inches of snow. The snowfall is expected to reach around 8-inches for most of the general area in the storm, but the NWS did warn that some isolated areas could experience up to 18 inches or more of snowfall before the end of the storm. Given the wide area covered by the storm, the NWS hasn’t been able to point to areas that would be affected the worst. The winter storm warnings also stand in sharp contrast to Monday temperatures, with parts of the Midwest getting above 70 degrees. In Denver, the temperatures reached 80 degrees on Tuesday, with the forecast for 50 degrees on Wednesday and 37 degrees on Thursday. "All of these weather elements mean one thing, a very impactful event," said the Minneapolis branch of the NWS. The office also warned that "this would include widespread travel impacts, and the anticipating of more river flooding once this all melts in the next week." The storm's effects could linger for days, with the potential for more flooding. Floods in March killed at least three people and caused over $3 billion in damage. Winter Storm #Wesley is a beast! Blizzard conditions...icing...heavy snow...and severe, it has it all! If you need to travel, TODAY is the day because it'll start impacting the plains tomorrow & Thursday. We've got the details from noon - 4pm CT (1-5pm ET) today! pic.twitter.com/InCsjXOJLT — Liana Brackett (@LianaBrackett) April 9, 2019