Great Lakes region braces for more snow while cleaning up after lake-effect storms

Even more snow could be on the way for places in the Great Lakes region that are still digging out after days of storms caused deadly wrecks, collapsed a barn on top of 100 cows and buried some towns under nearly 6 feet (1.83 meters) of powder.

While cleanup was continuing Tuesday around parts of western New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan — where some places saw just an inch or two of snow while others were hit with several feet — areas in New York were still seeing snowfall and a lake-effect snow warning remained in effect into Tuesday evening. Some spots could get another 4 to 8 inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service.

Layers of snow piled on top of an Ohio high school caused its roof to partially collapse while the building was closed over the weekend. School officials near Ashtabula found more damage on Monday, saying it would take weeks to repair and that they were making plans to move classes elsewhere.

More than five feet (1.5 meters) of snow blanketed the area east of Cleveland along Lake Erie and more was expected later in the week with a winter storm watch in place from the weather service beginning Wednesday night into Friday.

Parts of western Pennsylvania could see another 3 to 9 inches (8 to 23 centimeters) from late Wednesday through Thursday morning. Many school districts in the western part of the state remained closed Tuesday after several days of lake-effect snow.

Crews were making good progress in keeping roads open, officials said, and most travel restrictions had ended by Tuesday morning.

Members of the Pennsylvania National Guard were using Humvees and tactical vehicles to transport health care workers and those needing medical care while also rescuing stranded drivers during the past four days, according to a spokesperson, Maj. Travis Mueller.

The heavy snow in recent days was also blamed for a series of fatal accidents. Three people died Monday morning in an Iowa crash involving two vehicles after a driver crossed into the oncoming lane of traffic to pass a snowplow, according to the Iowa State Patrol.

In western Kentucky, two people died in a crash Monday night that blocked Interstate 24 for hours. Winter weather conditions had caused multiple accidents along the highway, officials said.