Winter storm updates: Big winds, bitter cold mess with travel, schools, life
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Updated: 6:30 p.m.
State transportation officials issued a no-travel advisory for a wide swath of southcentral and southwest Minnesota on Thursday night, including the overnight closure of many highways, as blizzard conditions swept into the region.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation issued the no-travel advisory for 24 counties: Blue Earth, Brown, Chippewa, Cottonwood, Faribault, Jackson, Kandiyohi, Le Sueur, Lincoln, Lyon, Martin, McLeod, Meeker, Murray, Nicollet, Nobles, Pipestone, Redwood, Renville, Rock, Sibley, Waseca, Watonwan and Yellow Medicine.
In addition, MnDOT said most state and federal highways in the advisory area — including Interstate 90 west of Albert Lea — would be closed to traffic overnight, with additional closures likely into Friday. State plow crews were going to be pulled from the roads in that area at 7 p.m. Thursday, and resume operations Friday morning if weather conditions allow.
“Challenges with this blizzard stem from prolonged high winds causing blowing and drifting snow, dramatically reduced and zero visibility at times, along with extremely dangerous wind chills,” MnDOT reported just after 6 p.m. Thursday. “Conditions could be life-threatening if travelers were to become stranded. Travelers should consider changing travel plans until the blizzard warning is no longer in effect.”
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Find updates on road closures and driving conditions on MnDOT’s 511 page.
Those no-travel advisories came toward the end of a day that saw Minnesota bracing for the second phase of a two-part winter storm.
The first part to affect Minnesota — the snow — had largely ended Thursday, with accumulations of more than a half-foot reported in some locations, including 8.1 inches at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Parts of the North Shore reported a foot of snow.
Now the second part — the wind — will kick in, blowing around the freshly fallen snow and producing whiteout conditions, along with dangerous wind chills.
Wind gusts may reach 50 mph or greater across parts of Minnesota and possibly 60 mph along the North Shore, the National Weather Service reported.
Noting a “short-term rise in natural gas market prices due to the extreme cold across much of the country,” CenterPoint Energy on Thursday urged its Minnesota customers to temporarily lower their home thermostat settings — to 65 degrees during the day, if possible — to help conserve energy and save money.
Blizzard warnings are now in effect across all of southern and much of central and western and northeastern Minnesota.
They include the western and southern Twin Cities metro area along with St. Cloud, Morris, Marshall, Mankato, Rochester and Red Wing, along with the North Shore. They also cover much of Iowa and the Dakotas, and parts of northwest Wisconsin.
They'll last into Saturday in southern Minnesota, and through Sunday morning in Lake and Cook counties.
“This is not for falling snow, but blowing snow that will reduce visibilities and create whiteout conditions in those areas because, again, that snow is very light, very fluffy — and these winds are going to be intense,” MPR News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard said.
The National Weather Service Twin Cities office warned that “many hours of whiteout conditions are expected during that time with travel becoming very difficult or impossible as roads drift shut. In addition, arctic air with dangerously cold wind chills will spread across the region. This event could be life-threatening if you are stranded, with wind chills in the 30 below to 45 below zero range.”
Winter storm warnings, wind chill warnings and wind chill advisories also are in place for parts of Minnesota. Gale and storm warnings are in effect on Lake Superior.
The large storm, which is affecting most of the country with snow and bitter cold, was drawing attention from the White House.
“This is not like a snow day when you were a kid,” President Joe Biden told reporters at the White House on Thursday morning. “This is serious stuff.”
City, county and state plow crews were preparing for multiple days of long shifts to clear highways across Minnesota. There were long lines at the Twin Cities airport as travelers rushed to catch flights before winds pick up later Thursday. Many school districts canceled classes. And utility companies were bracing for another round of possible power outages.
Snow totals reported Wednesday and early Thursday included:
12 inches at Tofte
11.7 inches at Lutsen
8.5 inches at Green Isle
8.1 inches at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Robbinsdale, Ramsey and Lakeville
7.5 inches in White Bear Lake
7.3 inches at Shakopee, Elko New Market, Lindstrom, East Bethel and Hopkins
7 inches at Lake Elmo, Stacy, Tamarack, New Prague and Lino Lakes
6.3 inches near Otsego
6 inches at Winthrop and Maple Plain
5.4 inches in Chanhassen and Pine City
4 inches at Slayton, Rochester and Wright
3.8 inches at Pillager
2.7 inches in Duluth
Additional snow reports from around the region.
Army of plows on the road
Wednesday’s snow led to nearly 1,000 crashes and spinouts on Minnesota highways between 6 a.m. Wednesday and 11:30 a.m. Thursday, according to the State Patrol.
Those totals were just for state and federal highways, and don’t count city and county roads. There were no reports of serious injuries or fatalities. The Waconia School district said no one was injured Wednesday afternoon when a school bus with 22 children aboard overturned along a road in Carver County.
Ahead of the snow, an army of snowplows fanned out on highways across Minnesota and will remain in action as winds start to cause drifting snow.
“We do anticipate all crews to really be in action across the state,” said Anne Meyer, a spokesperson with the Minnesota Department of Transportation. “So that's 200 plows in the metro area, 400 drivers — and then statewide you're looking at 800 snowplows, 1,600 drivers. That'll help in addressing some of those overnight issues. Many crews will be working 12-hour shifts to keep snowplows on the road 24 hours a day, to really tackle what we're gonna get from Mother Nature.”
In addition to MnDOT plows, city and county crews will be out, too. Meyer said drivers should check road conditions on the state's 511 website and should try to avoid driving during the worst of the storm.
Lt. Gordon Shank with the Minnesota State Patrol said Thursday that it appeared many people were heeding warnings not to travel until the storm moves out this weekend, he added.
"For us, we know this is a long couple of days,” he said. “We'll continue to see, with the high winds and the ice on the roadways and the blowing snow, that there's still some challenges that drivers are going to have around the state. We want drivers to make sure that they're cognizant of that, they're giving themselves extra time if they need to go somewhere and that they're checking the conditions before they decide to head out."
To the west, South Dakota transportation officials closed Interstate 90 between Sioux Falls and Rapid City due to whiteout conditions. Authorities said stuck and stranded vehicles were blocking lanes of traffic along the freeway.
Interstate 29 between Sioux Falls and the North Dakota state line also is closed to all traffic.
In North Dakota, I-94 is now closed between Jamestown and the Montana state line. Even where highways are technically open, authorities are advising no travel across much of North and South Dakota.
Watching the airport
The storm is arriving during some of the busiest travel days of the year, ahead of Christmas.
Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport reported more than 70 canceled flights Thursday afternoon and additional delays — though many flights were still arriving and departing on time amid the lull between the snow and the wind.
Airport officials were reporting some long wait times at security checkpoints in Terminal 1 early Thursday, though that improved through the morning.
Wednesday was also a busy travel day, with the airport expecting more than 30,000 travelers to pass through security — many of them rushing to beat the worst of the storm. Wednesday’s snow did cause numerous flight delays and a few cancellations; a “ground stop” due to icy conditions was in place for the airport for a time Wednesday evening.
MSP Airport spokesperson Jeff Lea said earlier Wednesday that overall, operations were moving smoothly.
“In many ways, this is a routine sort of holiday operational plan in the sense that we have peak activity and our partners … plan on that and bring in additional staff where needed,” Lea said.
Twin Cities airport officials said travelers should keep an eye on the forecast and their flight's status, and expect delays on roads near the airport.
Schools announce closures
Many school districts across southern and central Minnesota canceled classes Thursday, or moved to an e-learning day.
Among the districts canceling classes are Anoka-Hennepin, Burnsville-Eagan-Savage, Rochester, Hastings, Forest Lake, Eden Prairie, Winona, Hopkins, Lakeville, Austin, Mankato, Owatonna, New Ulm, Worthington, Morris and North Branch.
Districts moving students to an e-learning day include Alexandria, Becker, Windom, Waseca and Marshall.
Check with your local district for updates on the status of school.
Minneapolis and St. Paul public schools were among the districts already off this week for winter break; many others already planned to be off on Friday.
The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board said all its recreation centers will be closed Thursday.
Some cities declare snow emergencies
Some Minnesota cities have declared snow emergencies, to help city crews trying to clear the new snow.
Cities with snow emergency parking rules in effect include Minneapolis, St. Paul, Eden Prairie and Richfield, Brooklyn Center, Robbinsdale and St. Louis Park.
Power outage concerns
Xcel Energy reported about 1,500 homes and businesses without power in its Minnesota service area early Thursday — with the largest outages, totaling more than 1,000 customers, in southern Chisago and northern Washington counties. Those outages appeared to have been mostly resolved by 6:20 a.m.
In central and northeast Minnesota, utility companies that just restored power to tens of thousands of homes and businesses which lost service amid last week's winter storm were preparing for a potential additional round of outages.
Lake Country Power and Minnesota Power said trees and branches that were weakened — but didn't fall — during the previous storm, may now topple onto power lines during this week's heavy snow and strong winds.
“The biggest threat for power outages is expected to come from trees still loaded down with snow from last week’s wet, heavy snowfall. High winds, coupled with low temperatures this week that will make the trees more brittle, could lead to more trees and limbs contacting power lines,” Minnesota Power reported. The utility said its crews have “been working since last week’s storm to pre-emptively remove trees that threaten power lines and could cause an outage.”
“Despite the preventative tree removals, power outages are still possible during this storm. Travel and working conditions are expected to be hazardous and difficult at times and could slow any response during what is expected to be bitterly cold and windy weather.”
'Madness' at grocery stores
Grocery stores across the state have been seeing a rush of customers who are both preparing for holiday gatherings and trying to beat the storm.
That includes Superfair Foods in St. James, where a blizzard warning will take effect Thursday.
"It's been — it's been madness since Monday," Mason Collier, a store manager, said Wednesday. "High influx, lots of customers trying to beat the storm. And then on top of the weather is, you know, the holiday, Christmas, coming up. And that just creates madness."
Full parking lots and long checkout lines were being seen at grocery stores in the Twin Cities and elsewhere around the state, too.
Nick Cronin, a store manager at a Seward Co-op location in Minneapolis, said to remember to be kind to those working.
“They’re hard jobs. They're important jobs,” he said. “(If) something that you wanted isn’t available or something like that, just remember that you’re dealing with people. Quite often the people that you’re dealing with in the store are not the people that can, like, change what’s happening.”
Metro Transit activates cold-weather protocol
With temperatures below zero, Metro Transit activated its cold weather protocol Wednesday. People who need a warm place to stay will not be turned away from the Twin Cities' public transportation if they're unable to pay a fare.
But spokesperson Drew Kerr said the agency does not encourage people to use buses, trains or transit facilities as shelter, and should instead use public transit to access warming centers.
Kerr says managers have directed drivers and other staff to watch for anyone in need of help, and to report the information to dispatchers.
In bitter cold, public transit becomes a refuge for some
MPR News reporters Peter Cox, Sarah Thamer, Matt Sepic and Jacob Aloi contributed to this report.
Links for more information
Here’s how to keep tabs on forecasts, travel conditions and flight updates over the next few days.
Forecast updates
MPR News: Live weather blog and real-time radar
National Weather Service: Snowfall reports
Winter storm watches are in effect from Wednesday through late Friday for southern, most of central and northeastern Minnesota. That includes the Twin Cities, St. Cloud, Duluth, Rochester and Mankato. Wind chill watches and warnings also are in place for much of the region later this week.
Travel conditions
These state transportation departments offer live updates on road conditions and crashes:
For bus and light rail riders in the Twin Cities, Metro Transit offers weather-related updates on its Metro Transit and Metro Transit Alerts Twitter pages, as well as on its website.
Flight updates
If you’re planning to fly from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport or another airport around the region — or if you are expecting visitors to arrive by plane — airports offer flight status updates online:
Trail conditions
While a winter storm can cause trouble for travelers, it can be welcome news for skiers, snowmobilers and other winter activity enthusiasts.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources offers updates on cross-country ski and snowmobile trail conditions at state parks and along state trails around Minnesota.
The Minnesota Ski Areas Association posts updates on snow conditions at downhill ski and snowboard areas around the state.
The Loppet Foundation posts updates on cross-country ski trail conditions in Minneapolis.
SkinnySki.com shares cross-country ski trail updates from across the state.
MPR News reporters Sarah Thamer and Peter Cox contributed to this report.