Snow, Winds Hit Upper Midwest; Record Low Temperatures in Texas

A blast of early autumn snow and gale-force winds swept into the upper Midwest on Wednesday, covering parts of Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin with up to six inches of powder and battering boats moored along Lake Michigan in Chicago.

At the same time, the mercury plunged below freezing in some Midwestern cities, with Duluth, Minn., reporting a record low for Oct. 10 of 21 degrees.

Texas also was chillier than usual for early October, with record morning lows in seven cities, including a 36-degree reading in San Angelo and 38 degrees in Wichita Falls and Midland.

The National Weather Service issued a gale warning along Lake Michigan as 46-m.p.h. winds whipped up eight-foot waves that bashed boats against concrete moorings in Chicago’s Monroe Harbor Yacht Club.

Chicago Park District officials said that 38 of the 1,200 boats at the club had been damaged by high winds since Sunday. Bob Nelson, director of harbors for the district, estimated the damage at an average of $5,000 a boat.

Heavy snow in the Freeport, Ill., area downed power lines and snapped tree branches, police said. Roads in the area were described as slick and hazardous. Snow was reported in Peoria in central Illinois also.

Central and south-central Wisconsin also received snow. The weather service reported that Friendship had six inches; Nekoosa, four inches; Wisconsin Rapids, three inches, and Antigo two inches.

At least one person was killed in a snow-related traffic accident outside of Madison, Wis., police said.

Elsewhere, Tropical Storm Marco formed in the Gulf of Mexico from a low-pressure system energized by the remains of Tropical Storm Klaus.

The new storm, with 45-m.p.h. winds, was centered 70 miles northwest of Key West, Fla., but was expected to strengthen and move northwest, pouring as much as three inches of rain on parts of Florida.

A tropical storm warning was posted over Florida Bay and the Florida Keys from the Dry Tortugas through Key Largo and over the west coast of Florida from Monroe County through Longboat Key.