New Storm Heads for Northeast : Parts of Upper Midwest Get Nearly a Foot of Snow

The latest in a series of storms blanketed sections of the upper Midwest with nearly a foot of snow Thursday.

The new storm brought rain and sleet to the lower Great Lakes and then headed toward the Northeast, threatening heavy snow in northern New England and upper New York state, the National Weather Service said.

Record low temperatures were set in 10 cities in New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and New England, while record highs were set in Apalachicola, Fla., with a reading of 82 degrees, and Miami, where the mercury soared to 87.

In the South, severe thunderstorms produced at least one tornado and strong winds that whipped through trailers and a home in Mississippi and Louisiana, injuring five people.

40 Storm-Related Deaths

Wintry storms this month have been blamed for at least 40 deaths, 12 since Monday, many from traffic accidents on snowy and icy roads.

A traffic accident east of Fort Dodge prompted the Iowa Highway Patrol to block about four miles of Interstate 35 from the Minnesota border into northern Iowa, where nearly a foot of snow fell Thursday.

In a separate accident, a truck carrying turkeys destined for Thanksgiving dinner tables slid off snow-covered Highway 2 about four miles west of Cherokee in northwestern Iowa, killing more than 200 of the birds.

Thursday’s snowfall included 10 inches in Waverly, Iowa; eight inches in Denver, Iowa; seven inches in central Wisconsin, and three inches in Lansing, Mich. Gale warnings were posted across Lake Michigan.

Wrecks Caused by Snow

At Green Bay, Wis., Highway 41 Truck Plaza’s shop foreman, Steve Nohr, said the snow meant more business for his crew.

“We’re super busy today,” he said. “We got enough snow where it’s slippery, and it’s that wet, packy stuff. So when a car goes over it there’s a track and the next car is pretty likely to take a slide. We’ve had two wrecks already this morning.”

A more intense storm in the Northeast on Wednesday left up to 20 inches of snow in New Hampshire, knocked out power to nearly 300,000 customers and shut down two major airports.

The latest storm was expected to deposit up to 12 inches of snow in parts of northern New England and upstate New York by today, weather service forecaster Bill Barlow said.