Christmas travel plans socked by weather

SEATTLE, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- Severe winter weather across the United States Monday led to canceled flights, closed highways and widespread disruption of Christmas travel, officials said.

Portions of the New York State Thruway were closed for a few hours Monday morning from near Rochester, N.Y., to the Pennsylvania state line as dozens of vehicles slid off the icy highway, CNN reported. The Buffalo, N.Y., region received 1 to 2 feet of snow Sunday and Monday, The Buffalo News said.

Travel was also difficult in Boston, where schools were closed because icy roads made it impossible for buses to operate. Airlines using Newark-Liberty International Airport in New Jersey reported two-hour delays while New York's LaGuardia Airport was logging delays of more than an hour, CNN said.

Residents in the Great Lakes Region, New York and New England were bracing for another round of heavy snow and gusty winds, the National Weather Service said.

On the West Coast -- where another winter storm is forecast for late Tuesday -- stranded airline travelers camped overnight Sunday into Monday at airports in Seattle and Portland, Ore., as Alaska, Horizon Air and Southwest airlines canceled flights due to blizzard conditions.

It could be midweek or later before some travelers can fly out of Seattle, KOMO-TV reported. Airlines canceled 120 flights Monday at Portland International Airport, KATU-TV Portland said.

Portland residents were blanketed with more than 11 inches of snow, the most since 1968, CNN said. Officials urged drivers were advised to stay off the roads.

Amtrak canceled trains on its Coast Starlight and Empire Builder routes.

Blizzard conditions in western Michigan led to a 30-car crash on Interstate 94 Sunday, officials said. Law enforcement officials blamed the conditions for the death of one man involved in another accident.

Indianapolis recorded a temperature of 2 degrees Monday morning, and officials in Ohio said a 79-year-old woman died after being found outside her home near Dayton Sunday, CNN reported.