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ceived heavy drifting, with parts of it closed for a while during the storm. Most snow plows had to be called back, because they could not see the roads or the roads would be drifted over shortly after they were plowed. Some county snow removal budgets were already depleted or were close to being depleted. Emergency personnel and road crews were working extended hours to keep up with the storm. Rescue vehicles had a difficult time responding to emergencies. In one case, a lady from Mobridge had to be brought to Aberdeen. The 100-mile trip took six hours. Also, a rural Westport man died because the rescue units could not get to him in time.
• Airports were closed or flights were canceled or delayed. Mail was delayed for some people up to several days with a huge backup of Christmas packages. Some government offices and many businesses were closed for several days. All sports and other activities were postponed or canceled. Farmers and ranchers had a difficult time getting feed to their livestock. Many cattle were loose and had to be found as they walked on snow drifts over fences. Several livestock and countless number of pheasants were also killed by the storm with some buried in the snow. Several dairy producers had to dump thousands of pounds of milk, because trucks could not get to them in time. Fortunately, there were only spotty power outages throughout the storm. For several hours on the night of the 16th in the extreme cold, 3000 people in Pierre were without power for several hours.
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• 1944: The ships of the US Navy Task Force 38, seven fleet and six light carriers, eight battleships, 15 cruisers, and about 50 destroyers were operating about 300 miles east of Luzon in the Philippine Sea. A small but violent typhoon overtook the task force with relatively little warning. Many of the ships were caught near the center of the storm and buffeted by extreme seas and hurricane force winds. Three destroyers capsized and went down with practically all hands, while a cruiser, five aircraft carriers, and three destroyers suffered serious damage. Approximately 790 men were lost or killed. Fires occurred in three carriers when planes broke loose in their hangars and 146 planes on various ships were lost or damaged beyond economical repair by fires, impact damage, or by being swept overboard.
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• 1957: An unusually late tornado outbreak for the time of year for so far north struck Missouri and Illinois. 18 tornadoes were rated F2 or greater. An F4 ripped through Jackson, Williamson, and Franklin counties in Illinois. Murphysboro was hard hit with 10 people killed. Sunfield, IL vanished completely as an F5 tornado swept it clean.
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