Blizzard batters North and South Dakota

SIOUX FALLS, South Dakota (AP) -- A wintry blast of punishing wind and close to 4 feet of snow in places pummeled the Northern Plains on Thursday, stranding unknown numbers of motorists for a day or more and knocking out power to thousands.

Kya Olson, 3, hides her face as winds howl through her family's Rapid City, South Dakota, yard on Thursday.

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State officials said some people could be without power for days, but they had a simple message for anyone thinking of trying to drive in western South Dakota's blizzard: Don't.
"This is a dangerous storm," Gov. Mike Rounds told reporters in a telephone conference call Thursday evening. "Western South Dakota is basically under a no-travel advisory."
A long stretch of Interstate 90 was closed, and Rounds said most of the dozens of vehicles stranded along the stretch of highway had not been moved. Some have been stranded for more than 24 hours, he said, adding that search teams can't get to them because of zero visibility.
"We cannot see a thing in many areas where we're out actually searching for people," said Tom Dravland, state Public Safety secretary, who added that the top speed for some rescue crews was as little as a half-mile per hour.
Dravland said he did not know how many people are stranded. The Highway Patrol has responded to more than 400 calls for assistance, including 10 crashes. No fatalities were reported by late Thursday afternoon.
The storm has dropped 45.7 inches of snow near Deadwood, in the northern Black Hills. Reports of 10 inches to 2 feet of snow were received from many West River counties.
In some towns, residents reported drifts were blocking their doorways, and in the southwestern corner of the state, 20-foot snowdrifts were reported on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
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