A street sign warns drivers of ice prevention operations on highways ahead of winter weather in Dallas, Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022. A major winter storm was expected to affect a huge swath of the United States, with heavy snow starting in the Rockies and freezing rain as far south as Texas before it drops snow and ice on the Midwest. The forecast comes nearly a year after a catastrophic winter storm devastated Texas’ power grid, causing hundreds of deaths. (AP Photo/LM Otero) 
City of Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation employees load a salt truck at a city salt dome in anticipation of a winter storm Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in Chicago. A major winter storm is expected to affect a huge swath of the United States beginning Tuesday, with heavy snow starting in the Rockies and freezing rain as far south as Texas before it drops snow and ice on the Midwest. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) 
A City of Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation salt truck waits for a load in a city salt dome in anticipation of a winter storm Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in Chicago. A major winter storm is expected to affect a huge swath of the United States beginning Tuesday, with heavy snow starting in the Rockies and freezing rain as far south as Texas before it drops snow and ice on the Midwest. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) 
A City of Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation employee backs a fully loaded salt truck next to others in anticipation of a winter storm Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in Chicago. A major winter storm is expected to affect a huge swath of the United States beginning Tuesday, with heavy snow starting in the Rockies and freezing rain as far south as Texas before it drops snow and ice on the Midwest. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) 
Blaise Thomas of Bloomington, Ill., purchased a snow saucer and sled at Ace Hardware, in Normal, Ill., Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022. He was planning to take advantage of the weather to take his baby daughter for her first sled ride in the snow. A major winter storm is predicted to drop more than six inches of snow across central Illinois over the next two days. (David Proeber/The Pantagraph via AP) 
Hikers set off on the trail in Chautauqua Park as a light snow envelopes the Flatirons Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in Boulder, Colo. A winter storm is predicted to bring up to a foot of snow on some parts of Colorado’s Front Range late Tuesday and into Wednesday before moving on to the plains. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) 
Gov. Greg Abbott, front second right, holds a press conference about severe winter weather along with representatives from the Texas Division of Emergency Management, ERCOT, at the Alternate State Operations Center, Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in Austin, Texas. (Briana Sanchez/Austin American-Statesman via AP) 
Gov. Greg Abbott holds a press conference about severe winter weather along with representatives from the Texas Division of Emergency Management, ERCOT, at the Alternate State Operations Center, Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in Austin, Texas. (Briana Sanchez/Austin American-Statesman via AP) 
A Regional Transportation District light rail train moves down the tracks in a light snow Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in Denver. Forecasters predict that a winter storm packing high winds and heavy snow will bring up to a foot of snow in some spots before moving on to the eastern plains Wednesday. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) 
A woman walks to a bus shelter on Dr. Martin Luther King Drive as a man waits in the shelter during the pre-dawn hours Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022, in Chicago. A major winter storm with millions of Americans in its path brought a mix of rain, freezing rain and snow to the middle section of the United States as airlines canceled hundreds of flights, governors urged residents to stay off roads and schools closed campuses. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) 
Groundhog Club handler A.J. Dereume holds Punxsutawney Phil, the weather prognosticating groundhog, during the 136th celebration of Groundhog Day on Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pa., Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022. Phil’s handlers said that the groundhog has forecast six more weeks of winter. (AP Photo/Barry Reeger) 
Groundhog Club handler A.J. Dereume holds Punxsutawney Phil, the weather prognosticating groundhog, during the 136th celebration of Groundhog Day on Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pa., Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022. Phil’s handlers said that the groundhog has forecast six more weeks of winter. (AP Photo/Barry Reeger) 
Pedestrians navigate Chicago’s famed Loop in windy, falling snow and slushy street conditions Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022. A major winter storm with millions of Americans in its path brought a mix of rain, freezing rain and snow to the middle section of the United States as airlines canceled hundreds of flights, governors urged residents to stay off roads and schools closed campuses. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) 
A lone pedestrian navigates Chicago’s famed Loop in windy, falling snow and slushy street conditions Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022. A major winter storm with millions of Americans in its path brought a mix of rain, freezing rain and snow to the middle section of the United States as airlines canceled hundreds of flights, governors urged residents to stay off roads and schools closed campuses. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) 
A lone pedestrian navigates Chicago’s famed Loop in windy, falling snow and slushy street conditions Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022. A major winter storm with millions of Americans in its path brought a mix of rain, freezing rain and snow to the middle section of the United States as airlines canceled hundreds of flights, governors urged residents to stay off roads and schools closed campuses. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) 
A panhandler walks between cars as he navigates windy, falling snow and slushy street conditions Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022, in Chicago. A major winter storm with millions of Americans in its path brought a mix of rain, freezing rain and snow to the middle section of the United States as airlines canceled hundreds of flights, governors urged residents to stay off roads and schools closed campuses. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
CHICAGO | A major winter storm with millions of Americans in its path brought a mix of rain, freezing rain and snow to the central U.S. on Wednesday as airlines canceled thousands of flights, officials urged residents to stay off roads and schools closed campuses.
The blast of frigid weather, which began arriving Tuesday night, put a long stretch of states from New Mexico and Colorado to Maine under winter storm warnings and watches. On Wednesday morning, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan saw freezing rain, sleet and snow.
More than a foot of snow was expected in parts of central Missouri and Michigan, and up to a foot of snow could fall Wednesday and Thursday in central and northeastern Illinois. Twelve to 18 inches (30 to 45 centimeters) of snow was possible in areas of northern Indiana, said Andrew Orrison, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland.
“For a lot of areas, we are going to be looking at significant amounts of snowfall and also ice,” he said.
In Chicago, Elisha Waldman and his sons welcomed the opportunity to hit a sledding hill Wednesday morning, even as snow was falling over the city.
“Cold and wet and wonderful, and getting cold and wet is part of the fun with the guys, and we get to go inside and have hot cocoa and warm up,” Waldman said.
In Detroit’s western suburbs, Tony Haley also found an advantage to the weather. He owns a landscaping and irrigation company that offers snow removal and salting services, but the early winter weeks offered few opportunities for business.
“This one here, we’re looking for a good two, three days of work,” Haley said after clearing snow away from several businesses in Canton.
But for those on the roads, the heavy snow created hazardous conditions.
“We’re receiving a lot of snow over here in northwest Indiana and it’s the wet, slushy snow that causes treacherous driving conditions to say the least,” Indiana State Police Sgt. Glen Fifield told WFLD-TV.
In central Missouri, officials shut down part of Interstate 70 midday after a crash made the roadway impassable.
Areas south of the heavy snow were expected to see freezing rain, with the heaviest ice predicted along the lower Ohio Valley area from Louisville, Kentucky, to Memphis, Tennessee.
“If everything holds to where it is right now, this is the real deal,” said Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who ordered state government offices to close on Thursday. “It is dangerous. People need to be prepared.”
The disruptive storm moved across the central U.S. on Groundhog Day, the same day the famed groundhog Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter. The storm came on the heels of a nor’easter last weekend that brought blizzard conditions to many parts of the East Coast.
The storm’s path extended as far south as Texas, nearly a year after a catastrophic freeze buckled the state’s power grid in one of the worst blackouts in U.S. history. The forecast did not call for the same prolonged and frigid temperatures as the February 2021 storm, and the National Weather Service said the system would, generally, not be as bad this time for Texas.
No large-scale power outages were reported by early afternoon Wednesday in Texas or elsewhere, according to poweroutage.us.
Snowfall totals reached 22 inches (56 centimeters) in Colorado Springs and up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) in the Denver area, with more expected, prompting universities, state government offices and the Legislature to shut down.
Airlines canceled more than 2,000 flights in the U.S. scheduled for Wednesday, the flight-tracking service FlightAware.com showed, including more than three-quarters taken off the board in St. Louis. Airports in Chicago, Kansas City and Detroit canceled more flights than usual and more than 130 flights were canceled at Denver International Airport.
In an effort to stay ahead of the weather, Southwest Airlines announced Tuesday that it would suspend all of its flight operations Wednesday at St. Louis Lambert International Airport and Thursday at its Dallas Love Field hub.
National Weather Service forecasters in Little Rock put their own spin on the Groundhog Day tradition with a photo of their office cat, Tarmac, and the caption: “SHADOWS EVERYWHERE! THE WINTER STORM IS HAPPENING!”
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Associated Press journalists Julie Walker in New York; Jill Bleed in Little Rock, Arkansas; John O’Connor in Springfield, Illinois; Terry Wallace in Dallas; Margery Beck in Omaha, Nebraska; and Jeff Martin in Woodstock, Georgia; contributed to this report.