GENE RANDALL, CNN ANCHOR: To the big weather story still building across much of the country: snow. From school children to frustrated commuters, it's a picture of the good, the bad and the downright ugly. CNN's Eric Hong surveys the winter landscape.</s>ERIC HORNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Much of the United States awoke under a thick blanket of snow as a winter storm powered through the nation's midsection, dumping up to nine inches from Minnesota to North Carolina, producing picturesque beauty as well as scenes of winter's worst.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is pretty bad. You have to take all kinds of precautions now, because this time of the year, anything can change.</s>HORNG: As the storm moved east, blowing and drifting snow caused headaches on the roads. Many motorists waited in traffic, or for tow trucks. Officials in Iowa blame the treacherous road conditions for at least three deaths. In the nation's capital, buses sat idle as all area school districts canceled classes. The federal government said its employees could take the day off as the city put snow emergency plans in effect. Armed with 400 million pounds of salt and more than 350 spreaders, New York City sanitation officials said they were ready for the city's first snowfall in 10 months.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're capable of today of manning 700 plows on a day line. We actually have a larger force coming in this evening.</s>HORNG: But the snow may just be a prelude to a growing winter mess. Over the next few days, forecasters expect bitterly cold arctic air to follow the storm, dipping temperatures to single digits or lower. Eric Horng, CNN.
Thick Blanket of Snow Covers Much of the U.S.