A major winter storm lumbering across America"s midsection promised a white Christmas for some but brought headaches for travelers caught on slick, icy roads or dealing with canceled and delayed flights, according to AP. The worst of the storm was heading northeast across the region Thursday, carrying heavy snow, sleet and rain to a large swath of the Plains and the Midwest. Up to two feet (two-thirds of a meter) of snow was possible in some areas by Christmas Day. The National Weather Service issued blizzard warnings early Thursday for Kansas and parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska and the Texas Panhandle. It cautioned that travel would be extremely dangerous in those areas through the weekend and that anyone taking to the road should pack a winter survival kit including flashlight and water in case of emergency. Scott Blair, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Topeka, Kansas, said the wind was becoming a serious issue in central Kansas, with gusts reaching 40 mph (64 kph). «We"re going to see blowing snow,» Blair said. «The big concern comes later when we see snowfall with the wind, causing reduced visibility.» Slippery roads were blamed for at least 12 deaths _ six in accidents on Interstate 80 in Nebraska, four in crashes on I-70 in Kansas, one in Minnesota and one near Albuquerque, New Mexico. In Arizona, a dust storm set off a series of collisions that killed at least three people Tuesday. Nearly 100 scheduled flights from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport were canceled Thursday and dozens more were delayed, according to the airport"s Web site. The Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City shut down one of its three runways and canceled nearly 30 flights. The Chicago Department of Aviation said there were no major delays early Thursday at O"Hare International Airport or Midway International Airport. On Wednesday, it reported more than 200 cancellations at O"Hare and about 60 at Midway. Strong winds and ice caused power outages in Nebraska, Illinois and Iowa.
