Midwest swaddled in blanket of snow

An unidentified man pushes a car through a snow covered intersection in Lawrence, Kan., Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013. Kansas was the epicenter of a winter storm, with parts of the state buried under 14 inches of powdery snow, but winter storm warnings stretched from eastern Colorado through Illinois. / AP Photo/Orlin Wagner

Updated 11:15 PM ET

ST. LOUIS Powdery snow bombarded much of the nation's midsection Thursday, leaving as much as 17 inches in some places, shutting down airports, schools and state legislatures.

The storm system swirled to the north and east Thursday night, its snow, sleet and freezing rain prompting winter storm warnings from Kansas to Illinois. Forecasters say the storm will continue its crawl overnight, hitting the upper Midwest by Friday morning.

The system has already left impressive snow accumulations, especially in Kansas, where a foot and half of snow fell in Hays. Farther east in Topeka, 3 inches of snow fell in only 30 minutes, leaving medical center worker Jennifer Carlock to dread the drive home.

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The sound and fury of "thundersnow"

"It came on fast," Carlock said as she shoveled around her car. "We're going to test out traction control on the way home."

Corey Mead, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., said the winter storm would be centered in the upper Midwest by Friday morning.

"Even across Kansas, the snowfall rates should continue to taper off through the evening," Mead said.

Chris Suchan, chief meteorologist at CBS affiliate KCTV Kansas City, told "CBS Evening News" anchor Scott Pelley Thursday that the worst is over with. "This morning we had widespread thundersnow from Levenworth, Kansas [and] Overland Park to Warrensburg, Missouri," Suchan said. "Snowfall rates of 2 to 3 inches per hour brought this area to its knees with our motoristsbridges were closed for a while.

"Now what we're anticipating is another round for this evening, perhaps another 2 to 4 inches of snowfall, some freezing drizzle right now, and wind chills in the single digits. The storm total for us is about 8 to 12-14 inches of snowfall for Kansas City."

Numerous accidents and two deaths were being blamed on the icy, slushy roadways. Most schools in Kansas and Missouri, and many in neighboring states, were closed and legislatures shut down in Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Nebraska and Iowa.

National Weather Service meteorologist Scott Truett said the "thundersnow" that rumbled through Kansas and Missouri earlier Thursday was the result of an unstable air mass, much like a thunderstorm.

Chuck Carroll, center, uses a snowblower to clear the sidewalk in front of his business in downtown Salina, Kan., Feb. 21, 2013.

/ AP Photo/Salina Journal

"Instead of pouring rain, it's pouring snow," Truett said. And pouring was a sound description, with snow falling at a rate of 2 inches per hour or more in some spots.

All flights at Kansas City International Airport were canceled for Thursday night, and officials said they'd prepare to reopen Friday morning. In St. Louis, more than 320 flights at Lambert Airport were canceled, and traffic throughout the state was snarled by hundreds of accidents.

Northern Oklahoma saw between 10 and 13-and-a-half inches of snow. Missouri's biggest snow total was 10 inches, shared by the Kansas City metropolitan area, Rockport in the northwest corner and Moberly in the central part of the state.

But the highest amounts were in Kansas, where snow totals hit 14 inches Hutchinson, Macksville and Hanston, and 13 inches in Wichita.

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[Red_Dragon_Hawk]

i sternly object to the term swaddled ,as the term implies warmth an comfort

[mauidennis]

But did they go all crazy like they did in NY, with the "Storm of the Century"?

NO... They just handled it, will be at work tomorrow...

[democracy8]

NY didn't get much snow, but south central CT got hit with up to 40 inches in 12 hours. THAT'S a lot of snow.

[ThatOneGuy509]

Here in Wa we get snow like that all time lol no biggie

[notawing]

No you don't. Exaggerating.
Wa means DC? A couple inches is a big problem.
Washington state? You'd have to be living in the mountain aress, not cities.
Always some egos saying this is nothing for them.
Kansas, you had a big snowstorm.

[BloodThirstySavage]

It is somehow refreshing to see a word like "swaddled" used in the most prominent headline.

And from Texas, may your power stay on and your room stay warm...

[bobnjersey]

[Cases of wine and beer -- as well as bottles of scotch and whiskey -- were flying off the shelves at Ingersoll Wine and Spirits ahead of the storm's arrival in Des Moines, Iowa ... All flights at Kansas City International Airport were canceled for Thursday night, and officials said they'd prepare to reopen Friday morning. More than 320 flights at Lambert Airport in St. Louis were canceled by Thursday afternoon.]
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wine, beer, and whiskey have no problem 'flying' ... but every airplane in kansas city is grounded?

[john92021]

nice shorts, maybe snow tires would help his car.