Parts of Kansas and Missouri could see another round of freezing rain Sunday as a winter storm that has already coated roads in ice and contributed to accidents that killed four people churns through in the Midwest and Plains.
Three people died in three crashes in Missouri thought to be weather-related Friday and Saturday, the state highway patrol said.
In Oklahoma, a truck driver was killed in a crash on an ice-covered highway just before a 3:30 a.m. Saturday. The stretch of road was the scene of nearly a dozen other crashes, the state highway patrol said.
Over 20 vehicles were involved in a pileup near downtown Wichita, Kansas, Saturday. Two people suffered minor injuries, authorities said.
Parts of Kansas and Missouri could see more ice overnight, while parts of Iowa could see ice Sunday afternoon into Monday, forecasters said.
Widespread freezing rain is expected to continue over much of Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri through Sunday, as a result of winter storm Jupiter, according to a National Weather Service report issued at 2:55 ET.
There are expansive ice storm warnings, freezing rain advisories and winter weather advisories in effect from northeast New Mexico to central Illinois.
Forecasters expect a quarter to half an inch of ice will be common in the affected area Sunday — with half-an-inch to an inch possible, especially from southeast Nebraska to northwest Oklahoma.
This is expected to result in downed trees, power lines and power outages in the affected areas.
More than 2,800 flights are expected to be delayed today and over 200 are expected to be cancelled, according to the Weather Channel. Airports in the affected region appeared to be operating largely normally early Sunday.
The Kansas National Guard was mobilized Friday to assist stranded motorists and provide emergency transportation. Oklahoma’s governor declared a state of emergency for the entire state ahead of the storm.
Ice storm warnings were in place from northwestern Oklahoma, through Kansas and into much of Missouri and in northeastern Nebraska and southwestern Iowa Saturday night. Parts of southern Kansas got a quarter-inch of ice.
St. Louis forecasters said a last bout of freezing rain could come overnight, but in weather could persist in Nebraska and Iowa through Monday. The Omaha area could get between a quarter-inch to a half-inch of ice by Monday, the National Weather Service said.
“I would recommend that if you don’t need to go anywhere or if it’s not an emergency to just stay at home,” Iowa State Patrol Trooper Jeff Huffman said of the icy weather expected to hit the state Sunday and Monday.
Reports have said residents of the affected areas appear to be taking the warnings seriously, with grocery stores selling out of basic necessities like bread and milk, and hardware stores selling out of generators.
St. Louis’ Lambert Airport said Saturday that 38 departures and 17 arrivals were canceled due to the winter storm.
In some parts of Missouri, the ice wasn’t as bad as feared. Missouri electricity company Ameren said Saturday afternoon that only around 1,400 people were without power, down from around 30,000 earlier in the storm.
“There’s only been a few places where we found that half inch of ice that was predicted,” Kevin Anders, assistant vice president of operations and technical services for Ameren.
But the threat of icy weather caused Sunday’s NFL playoff game in Kansas City between the Chiefs and the Steelers to be postponed from 1:05 p.m. ET to 8:20 p.m. ET in order to give road crews a chance to clear streets.
The storm was expected to move northeast, but there was some good news: A freezing rain advisory for central Indiana which had been in place until 1 p.m. was canceled Saturday night.
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