Nation IN BRIEF : NATIONWIDE : Winter Encores in Plains, East Coast

An early spring storm whipped up winter-like conditions from the plains to the East Coast, and record low temperatures extended from Alabama to Kansas. Snow was reported over Michigan and in the East from Cape Cod to North Carolina. Up to 10 inches fell in parts of West Virginia, making driving hazardous. Three inches fell in Philadelphia, southern New Jersey and Ohio. Frost and freeze warnings were posted over Alabama, Georgia, the Carolinas and Tennessee. Flurries in Washington, D.C., failed to stop the National Cherry Blossom parade. Throngs of tourists and residents attended despite unseasonal cold and the absence of cherry blossoms, which last month bloomed early. But Seattle marked a 14th straight day without measurable rainfall--a very unusual pattern.