Nation IN BRIEF : NATIONWIDE : Snow, Wind Blamed for Fatal Accidents

The coldest weather of the season blasted the Plains, Midwest and South and caused a number of deaths, while parts of the Midwest remained buried from an earlier snowstorm. Snow and 50-m.p.h. winds caused whiteout conditions and several deadly accidents, on Interstate 74 in central Illinois. “We had multiple fatalities,” said Sgt. Richard Kaelin of the state police. Exact figures were not immediately available. In Michigan, dozens of schools remained closed, with more than 11 inches of snow piled up around Detroit. Snow fell as far south as southwestern Texas, where Guadalupe Mountains National Park reported wind gusts to 50 m.p.h. Lows in the 20s were recorded in Georgia. And, with temperatures in Florida expected to dip into the 30s or perhaps the upper 20s, strawberry farmers were picking early.