Snow falling across much of southern, central Minnesota for Halloween. What you need to know
Go Deeper.
Create an account or log in to save stories.
Like this?
Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.
It’s been a Halloween of frightful weather across much of Minnesota as rain changed over to accumulating snow — leading to dangerous driving conditions and widespread power outages.
As of Thursday afternoon, snow was falling across most of the Twin Cities metro area and in the St. Cloud area. The transition occurred earlier in the day to the south and west.
Snow reports relayed by the National Weather Service as of 3 p.m. — with snow still falling — included 4.3 inches near Plymouth and near Monticello; 4 inches at Winthrop; 3.5 inches near Maple Lake; 3 inches at Buffalo; 2.5 inches near Dassel and Dalbo; and 1.5 inches in East Bethel and Victoria.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation reported crashes and spinouts amid the increasingly icy conditions. The State Patrol reported it had responded to 169 crashes as of 2 p.m. Thursday, along with 94 spinouts or vehicles off the road. There was one fatal crash, and 16 involving injuries.
Turn Up Your Support
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
Traffic cameras showed snow accumulations not just on grassy surfaces, but also on some highways. Dozens of MnDOT plows were out on the road.
Minnesota utilities were reporting power outages amid the slushy precipitation and gusty winds — with more than 20,000 homes and businesses without service during the early afternoon hours. That number had dropped a bit by mid-afternoon.
The largest outages were affecting Xcel Energy and Wright-Hennepin Cooperative Electric Association customers in the St. Cloud area and in counties west of the Twin Cities. There were also widespread power outages from the northern Twin Cities metro toward Mora and Hinckley.
Winter weather advisories are in effect through Thursday afternoon from Renville, Sibley and Le Sueur counties northeast through most of the Twin Cities metro area and along the Interstate 35 corridor to Pine City, Cloquet and the Twin Ports.
The National Weather Service said the advisory areas could see 2 to 4 inches of snow with locally higher amounts.
Snowfall rates of 1 inch per hour are possible in some areas. A few embedded thunderstorms are also possible, which could “enhance snow rates further,” the weather service said.
Northwest Wisconsin is also under a winter weather advisory through Thursday evening.
The rain and snow will be accompanied by gusty winds and falling temperatures. The precipitation is expected to largely end before trick-or-treaters head out Thursday evening.
Find forecast updates on MPR Weather’s Updraft blog.
Links for more information
Here’s how to keep tabs on forecasts, travel conditions and flight updates.
Forecast updates
MPR News: Current weather conditions and radar
National Weather Service: Snowfall reports
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 X accounts, as well as on its website.
Flight updates
If you’re planning to fly out of 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:
Use the audio player above to listen to a conversation about this story on Minnesota Now with Cathy Wurzer.