Chill Dips to Minus 80, North Rockies to Plains

A frigid mass of supercold Alaskan air whipped by high winds plunged wind chills down to a dangerous 80 degrees below zero in the northern Rockies and Plains today, brought rare snowfall to Seattle and spread winter’s “big chill� as far south as Oklahoma.

“This is the worst of the winter but we knew it was coming down from Alaska so we are ready,� said Virginia Hull of Williams, Minn. “It was 31 below this morning and we’re expecting wind chills of 50 to 60 below this afternoon.�

The temperature in Russell, Kan., tumbled 72 degrees from 84 on Tuesday to 12 degrees today. Valentine, Neb., plunged from 70 to zero in 10 hours.

“It’s just like somebody opened the refrigerator door,� said Jerry Maul, a service station manager in Lincoln, Neb., where the temperature went from 72 degrees Tuesday to 10 today.

High winds whipped light snow and drifts into ground blizzards and sent wind chills to 80 below at Minot, N.D., 75 below at Cut Bank, Mont., 66 below at Williston, N.D., and 65 below at Jamestown, N.D., and Butte, Mont.

Wind chill advisories also were in effect for Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska as the cold wave pushed across the Mississippi Valley and the Plains as far south as Oklahoma, where the temperature fell from 80 degrees on Tuesday to 20 by today.

Storm Warnings Issued

Light snow fell over parts of the northern Plains and northern Rockies, and winter weather and storm warnings were issued from Washington to Minnesota. Up to 6 inches fell in parts of Washington, with lesser amounts in Montana, Idaho and North Dakota.

Snow even dusted Oregon’s northern beaches, which usually are rain-swept at this time of year. “This is like sprinkling sawdust on cake,� said John Mert, 34, of Cannon Beach.

Seattle’s temperature dropped to 20 degrees and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport closed at 6:30 a.m. today until snow-slick runways could be cleaned. Howling winds on Puget Sound halted ferry runs to the San Juan Islands.

Winds gusting to 70 m.p.h. slammed into the Reno-Carson City, Nev., area this morning, knocking out a transformer and power for about 4,000 residents north of Reno.

The winds set off burglar alarms at businesses in Reno and prompted the Nevada Highway Patrol to close a section of U.S. 395 between Reno and Carson City to campers and trailers.