Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1915-01-17
ENTIRE WEST IS
TIED UP IN BAD
BLIZZARD'S GRIP
Business Of Omaha ALI Tied Up and
Railroads to the West Have Hard
Time Keeping to Their
Schedule.
SNOW ALL OVER THE WEST
Street Cars Of Omaha Are Contin-
ually Blocked by the Heavy
Fall Of Snow.
STORES CLOSE IN EVENING

All of Nebraska, most OF Iowa, south
Dakota, wyoming and Colorado for sew
eral hours yesterday were in the grip
of the worst snowstorm and blizzard OF
the season The storm started some
where UP in wyoming at an early hour
Saturday morning and worked its way
southeast, reaching Omaha shortly after
o'clock From that hour until late last
night It held Omaha in a pretty firm
grip, nearly causing a cessation of busi-
ness.
All yesterday the stores OF the city
we're almost deserted and the people
who make up the usual Saturday crowds
remained at home. Instead of remaining
open until 9 o'clock. as is the Saturday
night rule, the big stores closed at 6
and an hour later the streets were dc
serted except as some lone pedestrian
hurried along seeking a place of shelter
While the weather was not as cold as
it has frequently been during bad storms,
there was a strong wind, making 1t seem
as IL the mercury were down several de-
grees below what it really was.
street Cars stalled.
The street railway company maintained
a sort of service during the entire day,
but cars were either run in punches or
far apart, It being impossible to maintain
anything like a schedule. Sweepers were
run over all the lines at intervals, but
there were not enough of them to keep
the several lines clear, and the result
was that when one line was cleared and
the cars moving 1t would be blocked
\ long before sweepers could again get
Aaround to clear the track
With the snow falling constantly from
morning until night, and a thirty-mile
wind driving 1t along, it was piled in
huge drifts along the streets, in door
ways, in yards and on lawns, though Its
actual depth, providing it had laid as II
fell, was but about eight inches at
O'Clock last night.
An attempt was made to keep crossings
and sidewalks cleared In the business
portion of the city, but the light snow
piled in again about assrapidly as 1t was
thrown out.
Trains Delayed.
During the day the storm intencrec
considerably with railroad traffic and al
trains coming into the city were from
thirty minutes to couple or more hours
late. Those from the west and nortt
were delayed the most Snow plows were
kept at work during the entire day, bu
the high wind kept the engines fron
making steam and in many instances
they had considerable difficulty in gettins
along and hauling their loads,
Freight trains were run on all thu
roads, but those that carried live stocl
tied up at stations where food and shcltei
)for the animals could be secured, re
naming there until the abatement of TIN
! storm. As a result of the storm live stool
receipts az the South Omaha stock yards
and grain receipts at Omaha were un
usually light.
Clearing In the West.
y Reports to the railroads last night in
Nicate that all through the west an'
northwest portions of Nebraska the storm
had abated and the weather was clear
though there was still considerable wint
and a general drop in temperature.
Last night the Northwestern reporteC
that from Omaha to Norfolk the storm
was still raging, but that west OF tn
last named place there was but little snoy
falling. However. east and south o
Norfolk and over into Iowa and acros
through Illinois there was a severe storm
raining.
Up and down the Missouri river vale
A from far above Sioux City to as far soutl
as Kansas City at a late hour last nigh
the storm continued. with little sign o
abating. over a greater portion Of thi
territory II was rapidly growing colder
with indications that the temperatur
would be close TO zero by this morning.
The Union Pacific yesterday mornin
reported snow and wind pretty nearl
all the way from Omaha to Green Rivel
Wyo., with the brunt of the storm fror
Omaha to a point 100 miles west. Las
night over a large portion of the lin
the storm had ceased. though the win
was still blowing and drifting the snow
On the line running up the North Platt
valley to Northport snow has stoppe
0sonffnued on PAGE Two, Column Six