KALAMAZOO (WKZO-AM) — West Michiganders have joined folks from all over the Midwest in the clean-up after the first major snowstorm of the season.
The National Weather Service says the storm dumped between eight and 16 inches in some areas from South Dakota to Southern Michigan.
Kalamazoo got 9 inches and Battle Creek got a foot, but a lot of it melted when it hit the ground.
Snow is expected to taper off as Sunday goes on and drive into Canada overnight. Parts of the area and upstate New York could see some lake effect snow ,but forecasters say the odds are low.
The storm has left a lot of very cold air behind and some slippery streets. It’s warm enough for salt and sand to work where it’s used but that usually isn’t the case on side streets.
There have been several minor accidents and a few bigger ones, like the semi rollover that shut down I-94 near Mattawan. Other major roadways in the region have seen crashes, but there have been no reports of serious injuries in the southern tier of counties.
Kent County Sheriff’s deputies say 23-year-old Tyler Kroll of Caledonia was killed when his vehicle collided with a car driven by 67-year-old Carol Ingrim Saturday afternoon. They suspect slippery roads played a role in the crash.
The storm is also being blamed for one death in Indiana, where police say a teen crashed into a truck.
There have also been a few scattered power outages, as heavy snow has brought down limbs, but they have been widely scattered and quickly repaired.
The most outages occurred in Cass, Berrien and St. Joseph Counties, where at the peak about 1,100 homes and businesses were left in the dark.
It will all melt away long before most will families hit the road for Thanksgiving.
– John McNeill
