Season's first winter storm finishes with Midwest, heads for Northeast

CHICAGO -- The season's first big wintry storm blustered across the Midwest on Friday and closed in on the Northeast, leaving hundreds of thousands without electricity, stranding airline passengers and burying streets in wet and heavy "heart attack snow."

The storm was blamed for at least five traffic deaths as it cut a swath from Texas to Michigan, spreading snow and freezing rain and closing schools and businesses.

The East Coast was expected to see rain and thundershowers and high winds by late Friday, with damaging gusts up to 55 mph as the cold front drew near.

In Chicago, where snow covered street signs and commuters walked gingerly along slushy streets, forecasters warned residents to be careful digging out of what they called "heart attack snow" -- difficult to shovel because it is so heavy.

"My daughter had to help my husband dig out the yard so he wouldn't have a heart attack," said Judy Siddiqui, as she arrived at work from the suburb of Lombard.

Chicago received 6.2 inches of snow, and many areas of Illinois, Wisconsin and Missouri got more than a foot.

The combination of sleet, rain and snow made driving treacherous. In Milwaukee, the slippery roads were too much for vehicle after vehicle -- even a snowplow overturned.

Near Paducah, Texas, a sport-utility vehicle carrying a high school girls' basketball team slid on an icy patch and tipped over, killing a 14-year-old player and injuring six teammates and the coach. The tournament the Paducah High School team was headed to was canceled.

Icy roads were also a factor in two other traffic deaths, one in Kansas on Wednesday and one Thursday in Oklahoma.

Winds in the Dayton, Ohio, suburb of Vandalia knocked down power lines and tore siding and shingles off homes. Forecasters said gusts of up to 60 mph were possible, and high-wind warnings were issued for virtually the entire state.

At Chicago's O'Hare Airport, American Airlines canceled all its flights before noon Friday and United Airlines canceled at least 385 arrivals or departures before 2 p.m.

Nevertheless, the airport didn't look much different than it does on any other Friday afternoon, suggesting many travelers stayed home.