Steady snowfall throughout the morning Wednesday led to crashes and other woes throughout the Flathead.

Local agencies responded to roughly a dozen crashes from Bigfork to Whitefish, with the majority occurring in Kalispell.

One crash at the intersection of Idaho and Main streets in Kalispell left one vehicle smoking and traffic blocked for some time.

Other crashes included fender-benders on Parkridge Drive, Fifth Street at Second Avenue East, and Mission Street at Sunset Boulevard.

The only injury reported was a woman who hit her head on the dashboard in a crash at First Avenue West North and West Idaho Street. Another woman who was 33 weeks pregnant declined medical attention after being rear-ended at the same intersection.

Several slide-offs also were reported, including two on Whitefish Stage Road that occurred back-to-back shortly before 4 p.m.

In traffic issues not directly related to the weather, a stalled vehicle held up traffic at U.S. 93 North and West Reserve Drive and a semi-trailer ran out of fuel in the southbound lane of Montana 82 at mile marker 65. 

An errant semi-trailer tire also reportedly smashed through the window of a church and, at about 8:20 a.m., power lines were downed on Karrow Avenue in Whitefish.

According to the National Weather Service, between four and eight inches of snow were still possible overnight.

The Flathead Valley remains under a winder weather advisory until 11 a.m. today with travelers cautioned to drive carefully and be prepared for snow-covered roads and limited visibility.

In addition, the Flathead Avalanche Center issued an advisory Wednesday indicating that while the avalanche hazard would be only “moderate” as the snow began to fall, it would rise to “considerable” as snow accumulated and the wind picked up.

“This means that once expected snow accumulates, human triggered avalanches will be likely on slopes with new storm snow overlying weak surface hoar layers,” the advisory read.