STORM DUMPS HEAVY SNOW ON AREA

Patric Stephens snowboarded down Academic hill Sunday. Stephens, who used to live in Oregon said the snowfalls aren't as frequent in Missouri, "but this is better than nothing."

With just a week of winter left on the calendar, Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois got hit by a storm that left more than a foot of snow in some areas.

Snow began falling early Sunday morning and ended shortly after noon. Total accumulation varied within the region.

Officials at the National Weather Center in Paducah, Ky., said Cape Girardeau County was hardest hit, receiving 14 inches of snow in some spots.

Jackson reported snow drifts reaching heights of 20 to 30 inches, while Cape Girardeau had 6 to 8 inches by noon Sunday. Williamson County, Ill., had a foot of snow.

The sudden burst of wintry weather isn't very unusual, said Pat Spoden of weather service. "It seems like in March some part of the lower Ohio Valley gets some snow like this."

"The good news is that this system is moving out of the area."

The weather service had been watching the system all week as it moved from Texas to Mississippi to Tennessee. Parts of Oklahoma, northern Arkansas, southwest Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and the East Coast were also affected.

But southern regions of Missouri were hit much harder than Cape Girardeau. In Springfield, Mo., accumulation reached more than 20 inches.

But the snow didn't really factor into serious problems for area police, although some accidents were reported. Most major roadways were cleared by public works crews early in the day.

Cape Girardeau police reported only four minor accidents and no other problems related to the weather. In Jackson, no weather-related accidents were reported.

"We've had people stuck, but no accidents," said Lisa Miller, a dispatcher with the Jackson police department. "Everybody's been staying inside. It's been pretty quiet."

Some people made it outside, though. But stayed within their yard to try their hand at building snowmen or to go sledding.

Tommie Elkins was one of the parents who took their children to Capaha Park for a rare sledding experience this year.

"It's a good day for sledding," she said. "It's nice because they haven't had a chance to sled all winter. Now we have to drag them away because they're getting cold."

Her daughter, Chelsea, 8, enjoyed her day at the park. "It's fun and exciting," she said.

She was sad that she hadn't been able to sled the rest of the winter.

Elkins wanted to make sure that her daughter had a chance to sled. So when Elkins and her brother, Jimmy Cook, took their children to the park, they stopped to buy an extra sled.

But Elkins almost missed her chance. Toys R Us, like many stores and businesses in Cape Girardeau, closed early Sunday because of the inclement weather.

Luckily, Elkins and her brother arrived at the store just after they closed.

A sign on the door said the store was closed early.

"But we knocked on the door and they were nice enough to let us in and buy a sled," Elkins said.

If the snow doesn't melt completely, children will have another day to sled and build snowmen. Most area schools, including Cape public schools, will be closed today.

But the snow won't last for long. Warmer weather, and spring-like temperatures, will begin melting the snow soon. Forecasts call for clear skies with temperatures climbing into the 50s and 60s by Tuesday.