Storm snarls traffic with heavy snow and strong winds

Challenging travel conditions in Cedar Rapids, Iowa City

Feb. 16, 2023 11:37 am, Updated: Feb. 16, 2023 5:10 pm

Road signs warn Thursday of bad weather on Interstate 380 near downtown Cedar Rapids. (Geoff Stellfox/The Gazette)

Two jackknifed semis Thursday morning caused a road blockage north of Boyson Road on Interstate 380 in Hiawatha. (Iowa Department of Transportation)

A winter storm with heavy snow and strong winds is making for difficult travel conditions Thursday, with Eastern Iowa seeing some of the worst travel conditions and highest snowfall in the state.

Snow plows clear freshly fallen snow Thursday on Second Avenue SE in Cedar Rapids. (Geoff Stellfox/The Gazette)

A band of light to moderate snow began moving in from the southwest just before 2 a.m. By 7 a.m., Iowa City already had accumulated 6 inches of snow. The Cedar Rapids area had between 3 and 5 inches of snow as of Thursday morning.

By late afternoon, Iowa City had accumulated 8 inches and snow was still coming down. Cedar Rapids had more than 4 inches as of the afternoon, according to snowfall reports.

The heaviest snowfall has been from Iowa County through northern Johnson County and southern Linn County, said Dave Cousins, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in the Quad Cities.

“We've had wind gusts up to 30 mph, and that'll cause some additional blowing and drifting snow, so the snow that has fallen will be moving around,” Cousins said.

The blowing snow, along with a mixture of snow, ice and slush, made for completely covered roads, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation.

Two jackknifed semis caused a blocked southbound Interstate 380 north of Boyson Road in Hiawatha. Traffic was being diverted off the interstate at County Home Road.

Roadways in the Corridor including Interstate 80 and much of I-380 were listed by the Iowa DOT as being completely covered in snow. Towing is not recommended in both Linn and Johnson Counties.

Road conditions, traffic events, weather warnings and more can be accessed through 511ia.org or with the Iowa DOT’s 511 app.

Twitter

The winter storm warning is in effect until 9 p.m. Thursday. Cousins said the snow is expected to taper off between 5 and 9 p.m. Winds will die down after midnight.

There will be low temperatures Thursday night that will bring wind chills as cold as 5 below zero come Friday.

“Turning colder for Friday, … and then we'll be warming back up again over the weekend,” Cousins said.

Comments: (319) 339-3155; izabela.zaluska@thegazette.com