US weather: Midwest hit with 'life-threatening' bomb cyclone blizzard

The region has already experienced severe flooding.

A "bomb cyclone" swept through the central part of the US on Wednesday, leaving heavy snow and rainfall in a region already plagued by flooding.

Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, North Dakota, Wyoming, Minnesota, and Wisconsin all saw heavy snowfall, with South Dakota reportedly seeing at least 18 inches in some parts of the state so far. Some areas are expecting as much as 30 inches before the storm system subsides.

The blizzard’s “life-threatening” conditions prompted Colorado Governor Jared Pollis to activate the National Guard. They’ll deploy 24 vehicles in preparation for possible rescues. The state also grounded as many as 300 flights.

State offices in Colorado and South Dakota, where power outages were reported, also closed Wednesday. Officials in both states have urged citizens in affected areas to leave work early.

In Minnesota, as many as 200 crashes have been reported since the storm began on Wednesday. Schools in St Paul and Minneapolis have closed due the weather. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has also called on the National Guard, particularly to retrieve drivers.

Traffic throughout all states affected has been halted, with major closings across interstate systems.

Last month, a late-winter bomb cyclone covered the same region with heavy rainfall, resulting in flooding. Some areas of Iowa and South Dakota, the latter of which is was heavily hit by the bomb cyclone, are still flooded. This blizzard threatens the area with still more flooding after the fallen snow, which for now has slowed potential runoff, melts.

"We're calling it historic because of the widespread heavy snow,” Mike Connelly, a weather service meteorologist in Aberdeen, South Dakota, told the Chicago Tribune. “We will set some record.”

The storm system is expected to weaken and move towards the Great Lakes region on Friday.