Some 2,000 vehicles forced to stop in Sidney by weekend storm

The closure of Interstate 80 over the weekend turned a large section of Old Post Rd. into a parking lot on Sunday.

The winter storm which moved through western Nebraska on Saturday afternoon dumped 17 inches of snow on Kimball County, eight inches on Cheyenne County and four inches in Lodgepole, according to the National Weather Service.

Westbound lanes of Interstate 80, as well as Highway 30, were shutdown for around six hours on Sunday between Big Springs and the Wyoming border. The closure was due to a large number of accidents and unsafe driving conditions.

As a result of this, many motorists were stranded between those two locations, according to Sidney police Chief B.J. Wilkinson.

"We spent from 7:30 in the morning to 4:30 in the afternoon yesterday (Sunday) dealing with traffic coming off the interstate," Wilkinson said.

He estimated that roughly around 2,000 vehicles were stuck in Sidney during that time period, around 500 of them semi trucks. Both sides of Link 17-J were lined with tractor trailers and all of the parking lots in the interstate area were full, he said.

Law enforcement had to block off Old Post Rd. from Wal-Mart to the Cenex station to make room for all the semis, turning the road into a parking lot for that time period. The vehicles were parked five wide along the road, Wilkinson said.

Sidney was a desirable stopping point for those unable to travel on the interstate because here they had access to fuel, food and bathrooms, he added.

Police were able to start assisting those who wished to get back on the road at around 4 p.m. The area was basically cleared of those who wanted to leave by around 6 p.m.

Most area schools operated on a two hour delay on Monday. The Nebraska state patrol investigated numerous accidents on Interstate 80 over the weekend due to icy and snow packed conditions. Most involved property damage only, while one included a non-life threatening injury, according to an NSP news release.

At least one semi wrecked in Cheyenne County, when the driver was unable to stop for traffic backed up at exit 59.