Motorists deal with slick roads, icy conditions - 13abc.com Toledo (OH) News, Weather and Sports

The National Weather Service cancelled blizzard warnings for some area counties Wednesday evening.  A winter weather advisory continued east of I-75 with a winter storm warning continued for counties west of I-75 through Wednesday evening.  Gusty winds continued to cause blowing snow. 

Snow totals through the region varied widely with Lima receiving 9.5" of snow by 9:00pm Wednesday.  Port Clinton, Fremont and Green Springs received 8" of snow by mid-evening but snowfall continued across Northwest Ohio.  Findlay measured 6", Fostoria 5" and Upper Sandusky 5".  4" was reported in parts of Lucas County including Sylvania by 9:00pm with around 2" hitting southern Michigan counties.  Some drifting of snow was reported after darkness fell as wind gusts in excess of 40 mph were reported in Defiance and Lucas Counties.

Hancock County moved to a Level 2 Snow Emergency at 5:00pm joining Seneca County and Sandusky Counties at Level 2.  Huron, Erie, Williams and Wood Counties declared level one snow emergencies.  Level one means "use caution" while level two recommends avoiding unnecessary travel.  Lucas moved to a Level 1 snow emergency Wednesday evening.  Several cities and villages ordered cars to be moved off streets to allow for more efficient plowing of streets.  Dozens of events were cancelled and some businesses closed early on Wednesday.  Wednesday afternoon, Toledo police instituted a "phase 2" response to accidents, meaning they would respond to injury accidents only.

The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) says approximately 100 crews from Fulton, Henry, Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky, Seneca, Williams and Wood Counties were on 12 hour shifts.  Blowing and drifting snow made for a challenge to keep highways clear. 

First Edison crews said they were prepared to respond to outages caused by the storm. Gale warnings were issued by the National Weather Service for portions of Lake Erie from Maumee Bay to The Islands and points east.   

13abc reporters traveling in Hancock, Seneca, Lucas and Wood counties said roads were snow covered and slushy at mid-afternoon.  Gusty winds created difficult visibility conditions for motorists and police and tow truck operators were busy responding to accidents.  No serious injuries had been reported by mid-afternoon.

Snow totals were expected to be 4-8" by the time the storm ends in Northwest Ohio but some areas could see up to a foot of snow southeast of Lucas County.

The storm hit during the busy holiday travel season.  Some motorists reported traffic at a standstill for more than an hour along I-75 north at Ottawa River Road after two semi trucks collided early Wednesday afternoon.  There were no injuries as a result of the early afternoon wreck.   A second accident slowed traffic at I-280 south near I-75.   

The Ohio Turnpike Commission issued a travel ban for high profile vehicles until Thursday morning at 7:00am.  An accident along the turnpike at 11:15am Wednesday shut down westbound lanes at the 24 mile marker.

Several accidents took place early Wednesday afternoon in the Toledo metropolitan area. 13abc Meteorologist Bill Spencer reports area roadways were icy and there were several spin outs along the Reynolds Road corridor near the Ohio Turnpike. 

13abc received dozens of event cancellations for Wednesday afternoon and evening.