Storm Sweeps Out of Rockies With Foot of Snow

A wintry storm swept through the Rockies with up to a foot of snow and strong winds Sunday. Waves whipped from Utah’s Great Salt Lake forced closure of some lanes of a freeway.

In Richmond, Va., meanwhile, the James River began slowly receding after inundating 1 1/2 square miles of the city, and merchants were allowed back into a low-lying area of downtown businesses. Many had moved their goods to higher ground.

Workers filled trash bins with debris and used sweepers and fire hoses to clean streets and buildings. Police and National Guard units kept curious onlookers away from the swirling waters. No injuries or arrests were reported.

Boy Drowns, Woman Lost

The river was 60 to 200 yards wider than normal throughout the city after cresting at nearly 16 feet above flood stage. One boy drowned and one woman was missing elsewhere in the state.

The Rockies storm brought wind-chill readings near zero in northwestern Utah and deposited nine inches of snow on Dillon, Mont. Twelve inches was reported in Olympus Cove, Utah, and nine inches in Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Mountains.

High winds diminished early Sunday after gusts up to 99 m.p.h. Saturday at Park City Ski Resort, officials said.

At one point, the Utah Highway Patrol closed the westbound lanes of Interstate 80 as 50-m.p.h. gusts sent waves from the nearby Great Salt Lake sloshing across the pavement.

One Body Found

About 30 miles south of Salt Lake City, searchers found one body Sunday and continued looking for three other people missing overnight on Utah Lake, which was battered by heavy winds, a sheriff’s spokeswoman said.

Broken power lines caused a two-hour blackout affecting about 10,000 people Sunday in Salt Lake County, officials said.

While the storm was moving into western Montana on Saturday, the southeastern corner of the state sweltered with highs of 91 at Broadus and Baker.