See blizzard blast through Plains as snow limits visibility on major highways
The powerful storm first dropped feet of snow in the Sierra Nevada then stirred up a blizzard in the Plains and Midwest.
Watch: Storm tracker give live report from Kansas blizzard
FOX Weather's Exclusive Storm Tracker Mark Suddath is covering the blizzard in Dodge City, Kansas. Take a look at what a blizzard looks and feels like.
A blizzard crippled parts of the Plains and Midwest on Monday with nearly a foot of snow and whiteout conditions. The powerful winter storm is now on the move as the storm's low-pressure center peaks in intensity on its journey into the Great Lakes.
Nebraskan digs out pathway for pugs after major winter storm grips region
Footage filmed by Marcus Todd Pitman shows snowy conditions on Tuesday morning outside his home in downtown Columbus, Nebraska, where 13 inches of snow fell.
Winter Storm Warnings currently cover millions in parts of six states across the Midwest as several inches of snow fall. Earlier, Blizzard Warnings were posted across Nebraska as snow combined with strong winds.
WINTER STORM THAT BLASTED PLAINS WITH BLIZZARD TAKES AIM AT GREAT LAKES WITH MORE HEAVY SNOW
Colorado teacher caught in whiteout conditions during Monday's storm
If a picture is worth a thousand words, this video literally drives home why highways are shut down from Colorado to Oklahoma to Kansas.
"We've seen wind gusts stronger than 50 mph on the backside of this low. That's why we (had) the Blizzard Warnings in effect," FOX Weather Meteorologist Britta Merwin said.
On Monday, driving was near impossible and first responders who tried to keep the roads clear shivered in below-zero wind chills as heavy snow combined with strong winds through parts of Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska.
More than 13.5 inches of snow has fallen in Lewiston, Nebraska, over the past 24 hours. The Nebraska State Patrol said they had responded to 50 weather-related accidents due to slick roads Monday.
Accidents closed I-80 through Nebraska thanks to blizzard
Listen to the wind scream as it blows around falling and fallen snow near Platte River, Nebraska. Troopers posted social media picture after post of countless disabled cars and trucks.
Crews closed miles of roads and interstates like I-80 and I-70 through Nebraska and Kansas as car after car slid off the slippery roads and tractor-trailers jackknifed, blocking lanes. Visibility dropped to zero in areas with blowing snow.
‘I’M SHOCKED,' VETERAN TRUCK DRIVER REACTS TO WRECKS IN STORM
The NWS defines a blizzard as wind blowing at least 35 mph and visibility below a quarter of a mile for at least three hours.
The NWS Goodland, Kansas, office posted the blizzard conditions outside their front door. The wind was blowing from the north-northwest at 38 mph and gusting to 60 mph. The air temperature at the time was 18 degrees but with the wind chill, the air felt like 4 below zero.
WHAT MAKES A BLIZZARD DIFFERENT FROM AN ORDINARY SNOWSTORM?
‘It's just mayhem out here'
FOX Weather's Exclusive Storm Tracker Mark Sudduth had to pull off the road midday in Dodge City, Kansas, as the wind and snow picked up.
"This is unbelievable. A few people coming in (to the hotel) saying that this is the worst they've ever seen. And I don't know how long they have lived here, but this is something else," said Sudduth.
"I've been in a lot of winter storms in my lifetime and obviously hurricanes. And this is like, to me, a winter hurricane out here in the Southern Plains," he added. "Snow blowing around, thundersnow earlier. People trying to get to the hotel. It is just mayhem out here."
Sudduth said he struggled to walk 70 yards from the hotel to his truck, "My face was burning, and it was very hard to see."
BLIZZARD SNARLING TRAVEL ACROSS PLAINS, MIDWEST AS WINTER STORM WALLOPS US WITH SNOW, WIND
What is it like to walk in a blizzard?
FOX Storm Tracker Mark Sudduth braved to cold to show us what it took to walk in a blizzard. As he goes from the hotel outdoors, the wind screams and his lens quickly gets coated with snow and ice.
He said he was surprised how quickly the weather turned, even after all his years storm chasing.
"Early in the day, it was just kind of rainy. Not a big problem out here; everything is brown like winter. About a 90-minute time period, it just ramped up out of nowhere and the wind picked up," Suddath said. "It happened very, very quickly, just an average winter morning of blah to now we have a big-time blizzard out here in Kansas."
SNOW, SLEET, FREEZING RAIN AND HAIL: WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?
Snow blew sideways in the winds and coated everything. Take a look at these horses in Colorado huddling together in a shelter but still covered in snow, like they were sandblasted.
Horses covered in snow during blizzard
Horses in Hartman, Colorado huddle for warmth after being blasted for hours by blizzard conditions. Despite their having taken shelter in the barn, strong winds blew snow sideways and coated fur and blankets.
The snow and ice stuck to everything. Here are the traffic lights in Ames, Iowa.
Snow-covered streetlights in Ames, Iowa.
(City of Ames)
Get the latest on the winter storm's track and impacts at this link.
More winter storms are likely on the way for the end of this week and again into next week.