Nasty weather conditions disrupt Thanksgiving travel

Nasty weather conditions disrupt Thanksgiving travel

Thanksgiving travel just got much harder on Wednesday when the stormy weather conditions which swept through much of the western section of the United States moved further into the central states of the country. Colorado had blizzard-like conditions with as much as 60 mph hour winds recorded while some parts of Montana experienced -40 degrees of wind chill, the National Weather Service said. Moderate to heavy snow were expected in sections of North Dakota, Wisconsin and Minnesota. Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois residents were notified about potential flooding.

Travel during Thanksgiving is one of the busiest during the year with an estimated 42 million Americans travelling through highways, airports and other transportation facilities. The Federal Aviation Administration already reported some flight delays because of the weather disturbance. The Pacific Northwest bared the brunt of the swooping storm system which killed three people there. Meanwhile, roads in Utah, Idaho and Wyoming were closed due to the wintry conditions.

In Nevada, rescue workers were busy looking for a hiker who was apparently not garbed in proper winter apparel when the temperature went down considerably. Rick Gentry called for help three days ago but so far the the only traces rescuers have found have been his hat, pack, a glove and snow shoes.

Strong winds also swept through as far south as Arizona which reported gusts of up to 35 mph. Las Vegas also reported freezing temperatures. After a brief respite, another storm is likely to hit the western section in Sunday, weather authorities say.

Posted by Sophia Andrews on Thursday November 25 2010, 1:52 AM EST. Ref: L.A. Times. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Travel. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0