Associated Press on MSN

Highways were treacherous for holiday travelers Monday in the upper Midwest in the aftermath of a blustery snowstorm that blacked out thousands of homes and businesses and snarled air travel. At least 19 deaths were linked to the weekend-long blast of ice and windblown snow, which led to multi-car pileups that closed sections of several major highways on the Plains.

Wind was measured at 88 mph over Lake Michigan, with gusts of 50 to 68 mph across the Chicago region, according to the National Weather Service. Because of the wind, airlines canceled more than 300 flights Sunday at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, the city Aviation Department said. Municipal officials said the wind had knocked out nearly 170 traffic signals, and there were more than 500 reports of fallen trees and limbs.

Read more here.

Satellite imagery shows the widespread snowcover. See full size here

See the Madison, Wisconsin NWS comparison of this December with 2000, the last snowy December here.

Some very cold arctic air will start descending into the nation in early January focused at first west and central but will spread east. It will make the headlines. More snow and ice will fall along the edges. The cold will reach at times into areas that a lot of forecasters are assuring folks nothing but warmth is ahead.