By Bruce Schreiner
The Associated Press

LOUISVILLE - The season's first winter storm slammed into Kentucky on Wednesday with a combination of snow and freezing rain that caused fatal crashes, knocked out power and shut down schools.

At least two people were killed in traffic crashes blamed on the wintry blast as snow and ice covered highways across Kentucky.

Thick sheets of ice coated trees and power lines in portions of far western Kentucky, leaving thousands without electricity.

"This is one of the more intense winter storms we've had in the last couple of years," said Rick Shanklin, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Paducah.

Kentucky State Police were inundated with accident reports, and some ditches were strewn with vehicles that slid off highways.

"It's nasty - sleet, snow, freezing rain, a little bit of everything," said Shari Clapp with Kentucky State Police in Mayfield.

The heaviest snow accumulations were expected on opposite ends of the state. Forecasters said 5 to 9 inches were possible in far western Kentucky, and 4 to 8 inches in parts of the Appalachian region.

A crash on the William H. Natcher Parkway in south-central Kentucky killed one person and injured three others, state police said.

The early morning crash near the Warren-Butler county line occurred when a northbound truck crossed the median and struck a southbound car head on, state police said. The car was struck on the passenger side by a truck carrying a propane tank, police said.

The driver of the car, Kenneth Rowan Jr., 25, of Owensboro, was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Southbound lanes were closed for hours while crews cleared the wreckage.

In Laurel County, a man was killed Wednesday morning when he lost control of his pickup truck on snow-covered Interstate 75, crossed the median and struck a tractor-trailer head on, state police said.

James E. Price, 62, of Eubank, was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. The driver of the tractor-trailer, Bobby Gene Cook, 43, of Jacksboro, Tenn., was not injured, police said.

In Hardin County, a state police officer was injured while working a crash on Interstate 65. The officer was in his cruiser when it was struck by another vehicle that skidded out of control, said Trooper Steve Pavey. The officer suffered cuts and bruises and was taken to Hardin Memorial for treatment, Trooper Pavey said.

A new traveler information service, available by dialing 511, was swamped with calls Wednesday, the state Transportation Cabinet said.

The Cabinet said it was working to increase the number of lines to handle the large volume of calls.

In portions of western Kentucky, ice-laden tree limbs downed power lines, leaving thousands of people without electricity.

About 3,000 customers of West Kentucky Rural Electric Cooperative were without power Wednesday, said Kevin Inglish, a utility spokesman.

Sporadic outages were reported among customers of the Hickman-Fulton Rural Electric Cooperative. But co-op officials worried that sustained freezing rain would take a toll.

"The ice is really building up on the lines," said Sharon Wilkerson, office manager for the utility. "The trees look awful. So I think we're going to have a long night."

Meanwhile, dozens of county school districts canceled classes or sent students home early because of slick roads.

Some districts called off classes in anticipation of snowfall. In Hardin County, school buses were called back from their morning routes as the snowfall was beginning.

Classes were canceled at several colleges in the region, and some churches called off Wednesday evening services. Some school districts got a head start and postponed classes again for Thursday.

Fort Campbell, the army post along the Kentucky-Tennessee border, closed down Wednesday because of the wintry weather.

Forecasters predicted 3 to 6 inches of snow across north-central Kentucky and up to 4 inches in some parts of southern Kentucky.