controversial decision he s made there. but first, the upper midwest is the next target for the winter storm which dumped more than a foot and a half of snow in kansas. watches and warnings are posted from nebraska to north carolina as this storm dumps snow and ice across a wide region. our coverage begins with abc s ginger zee in the middle of it all in topeka, kansas. reporter: halted in the heartland. the monster snowstorm made for white knuckle driving from cars being pushed and pulled to this car up in flames after revving the engine trying to get up a hill in kansas. inside the storm, it looked like this. and sounded like that. there we go. thunder snow. highways were shut down from missouri to kansas. just got out of control, lost control due to the weather conditions. scary? scary, yes, it is. reporter: ice was an issue in parts of arkansas and missouri, where freezing rain made travel dangerous. at the storm s peak, snow fell at an amazing rate.
it s really a mess out here. reporter: some lucky drivers found foul weather friends. whiteout conditions and icy roads made driving daring and dangerous. just got out of control, lost control due to the weather condition. reporter: scary? scary, yes, it is. reporter: they tried to hold back the blizzard with man and machine. but this time lapse photography shows you why it was a losing battle, with snow falling at three inches an hour in some places. in missouri, even the king of the jungle was driven indoors at the zoo. the blizzard is bearing down on chicago and parts of the great lakes and northern midwest are facing half foot of snow. for drought plagued farmers in the midwest, it s a blessing in disguise. this will get our spring crops growing. reporter: a spring that, for now, seems a long, long way off. brad wheelis, abc news, los angeles. what a mess out there. this storm system is impacting millions of people this morning
there. but first, the upper midwest is the next target for the winter storm which dumped more than a foot and a half of snow in kansas. watches and warnings are posted from nebraska to north carolina as this storm dumps snow and ice across a wide region. our coverage begins with abc s ginger zee in the middle of it all in topeka, kansas. reporter: halted in the heartland. the monster snowstorm made for white knuckle driving from cars being pushed and pulled to this car up in flames after revving the engine trying to get up a hill in kansas. inside the storm, it looked like this. and sounded like that. there we go. thunder snow. highways were shut down from missouri to kansas. just got out of control, lost control due to the weather conditions. scary? scary, yes, it is. reporter: ice was an issue in parts of arkansas and missouri, where freezing rain made travel dangerous. at the storm s peak, snow fell