11:30 am Hwy 385 now officially closed from the state line to Alliance and Hwy 20 is closed from the Wyoming line to Valentine.
    High winds and blowing snow have forced virtually all highways in the northern Panhandle to be listed as either officially closed or impassable. Local and state authorities are urging everyone to stay home if at all possible.
Hwy 385 is a mixture of the two: officially closed from Hwy 20 west of Chadron to the South Dakota state line and officially impassable from Chadron to Alliance.
Hwy 20 is closed from Chadron to Valentine and listed with a whiteout and drifting warning from Chadron to the Wyoming state line.
Hwy 87 from the South Dakota line to Rushville and Hwy 250 from Rushville to Hwy 2 is closed as is Hwy 27 from the South Dakota line through Gordon to Hwy 2. Hwy 29 is closed from Harrison to Mitchell.
Hwy 87 from Hay Springs to Alliance and Link 7E from Hwy 87 to Hwy 385 is listed as impassable while Hwy 71 from the South Dakota state line to Scottsbluff and Hwy 2 between Hwy 71 and Hemingford lists whiteout conditions.
SWANN, the Solid Waste Agency of Northwest Nebraska, has closed all its facilities and won’t make garbage pickups today while Chadron Community Hospital is open for emergency services only with all outpatient services closed.
       Chadron City Transit is not running today and the Chadron airport is closed with no flights in or out today.
Adding to the complicated driving conditions for a time this morning: escaped cattle in Chadron near the junction of Hwys 20 and 385.
Brrrr! It’s cold here in SoCal too. Highs only in the low 70s and lows in the high 40s. As usual, the Rose Bowl will be played on a warm sunny day in Pasadena. Happens every year.