![[Imagemap]](/US/images/nav_us.gif){kind=small}
December 20, 1995
Web posted at: 11:45 a.m. EST
(CNN) -- A nasty winter storm tested the holiday spirit of travelers in the northeastern United States as it dumped snow on highways and runways across the region.
Two days before the winter season officially starts, it was snowing at a rate of an-inch-per-hour in some parts of New England. Up to 20 inches was expected Wednesday from northeastern Pennsylvania to southern New England.
Local commutes and long-distance holiday journeys from Missouri to New York have been disrupted by the storm.
Main runways were open and running Wednesday morning at New Jersey's Newark International airport, though there were many cancellations and delays. More than 125 flights were grounded Tuesday because of the storm, as were many flights early Wednesday.
Workers at New York's three metropolitan airports used 1,800 tons of salt, 1,300 tons of sand and 132,000 gallons of environmentally safe deicing fluid to keep planes flying.
However, airport officials are optimistic. Continental Airlines spokesman Chuck Coble said he thinks the worst is over. (94K AIFF sound or 94K WAV sound)
The storm caused scores of school closings in the New York City metropolitan area Wednesday. The National Weather Service expected eight to 12 inches to fall, well short of earlier predictions of up to two feet. Forecasters said snow in the city would taper off and become snow showers Wednesday afternoon.
In Boston, 14 inches had fallen by Wednesday morning. At the city's Logan Airport, only one of three runways was open. The entire airport shut down for nearly four hours early in the day.
Winter storm warnings are in effect for parts of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Maine. Another five to 10 inches of snow is expected in that region by Thursday morning.
A mix of freezing rain, sleet and snow was expected from West Virginia eastward to southern New Jersey, with an inch of ice accumulation possible by Wednesday afternoon.
In Ohio, as much as a foot of snow fell overnight. Poor visibility caused Cleveland's Hopkins International Airport to be open only intermittently Tuesday. In Missouri, more than 129 flights were canceled Tuesday at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport.
In Indiana, an estimated 10,000 residents were still without electricity early Wednesday after ice pulled down power lines. Power outages related to the ice storm also occurred in Kansas, Illinois, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Slippery roads shut down schools from Kansas to Connecticut. Most New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Indiana state employees were sent home early.
AP and Reuters contributed to this report.
Copyright © 1995 Cable News Network, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.