Winter storm hits the state hard

The winter storm forecasters have been watching for days is finally upon us. Frank Boksa, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in metro Des Moines, says a Winter Weather Advisory is up for northwest Iowa, but all the rest of the state is under a Winter Storm Warning.Some areas of the state may see a total of ten new inches of snow from this storm, in addition to the ice underneath the latest snow layer. As the snow slows later today, Boksa says another problem will materialize as winds increase and blows the snow around.As temperatures fall, winds are expected to pick up, blowing and drifting the snow and making driving all the more hazardous. Connie Richmeyer works at the Boon Docks Truck Haven Cafe, a popular place for the truckers along I-35 near Williams in Hamilton County. She says the power has been going on and off all night.Richmeyer says many truckers have hunkered down at the haven to spend the night.The Highway Patrol says travel is not recommend on the following: I-29 South, I-35 North, Central and South, I-80 Central, and parts of I-380 were closed due to wrecks near mile marker 66.The weather front is marching from west to east in Iowa.Power outages are reported in Fremont and Montgomery Counties. The city of Red Oak is power-less, but Shenandoah still has electricity. Galloping power lines are creating when the wind whips the ice-laden lines, causing outages. The Omaha metro area received between five and seven inches of snow overnight.