PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS CONVERTED 4:3 MATERIAL<br/> <br />A major winter storm in the U.S. has blanketed several states in the Midwest in more than 40 centimetres of snow.<br/> <br />Two people have been killed in car accidents.<br/> <br />Parts of Colorado, Kansas and Oklahoma have been hit by a combination of hail, sleet and freezing rain.<br/> <br />Kansas bore the brunt of the storm.<br/> <br />More than half of Interstate 70 and as well as the Kansas City International Airport were closed as snow fell up to eight centimetres per hour in some areas.<br/> <br />SOUNDBITE: Unidentified traveller saying: "When I first walked in, I saw the line here and said, 'this cannot be good,' so I go to the board. People here are great. Asked a lady to help me out with what was going on, and she was really honest. Everything pretty much is cancelled for the next four hours - and depending on weather."<br/> <br />Airport officials say they're preparing to reopen on Friday.<br/> <br />The storm is expected to reach the East Coast this weekend, delivering heavy snow to parts of New England for a third straight weekend.
