Drivers Rescued as Snowstorm Belts Midwest

National Guardsmen on Wednesday rescued Thanksgiving travelers stranded on snow-covered highways after a deadly blizzard dumped more than a foot of snow in parts of Colorado, Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas.

Major highways across western Texas that had been closed by snow drifts up to six feet deep began to reopen, but heavy snow and strong wind shut roads in western Kansas.

The storm moved into Missouri, snarling morning rush-hour traffic in Kansas City, and into Iowa, where authorities said a woman was killed in a traffic accident.

In western and central Kansas, National Guard soldiers assisted motorists and opened armories for shelter from the storm.

Jose Ramirez, a 24-year-old Army corporal trying to get back to Ft. Riley, Kan., drove with his family through the storm for about 300 miles before he had to take shelter Tuesday in Meade, Kan., at a county ambulance barn. “It looks like we’re going to be stuck here again tonight,” he said Wednesday.

About 30 truck drivers were stranded at the Texaco Truck Stop in Liberal, Kan., when U.S. 54 was closed Tuesday.

In Elmwood, Okla., the Highway Patrol sent out two four-wheel drive vehicles and found at least 20 vehicles, some carrying children, on a road that was closed Tuesday.

Sam Ireland, 33, of Dallas, who was trying to get to Gunnison, Colo., for a ski weekend, waited with his brother for word that they could leave Elmwood.

Texas National Guard units in the Panhandle plucked 60 motorists from snow-clogged highways.