Ice out of Minnetonka, flakes still possible
The ice went out of Lake Minnetonka this morning, and spring cannot be far away. Here is the late afternoon webcam view:
According to the Freshwater Society:
"Freshwater Society and the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Water Patrol returned to shore early this morning and declared the lake to be ice free as of Thursday, March 17 at 12:16 a.m., the second earliest ice-out date on record. This is 19 days earlier than 2015 and 28 days earlier than the April 14 median date — when half the recorded ice-outs have occurred earlier and half later."
Here is the updated ice out chart:
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More info on Lake Minnetonka ice out history and procedures can be found at MTKA ICE .
Flakes still possible
Even though the ice is out of many lakes, we are in a weather pattern that could give us occasional flakes or rain showers tonight, tomorrow and Saturday:
Highs Friday will be very typical for this time of year:
High temps will also be very close to normal this weekend, and we probably won't see 50 in the Twin Cities until next Tuesday:
Sunday looks like the nicer day of the weekend.
Flood problems
Recent heavy rains and melting snow are causing some flooding problems in Minnesota and western Wisconsin. Durand WI is among the areas under a flood warning, until Tuesday evening. Here are details from the Twin Cities office of the National Weather Service:
The Flood Warning continues for
The Chippewa River at Durand.
* from this evening to Tuesday evening.
* At 9:45 AM Thursday the stage was 12.2 feet.
* Minor flooding is forecast.
* Flood stage is 13.0 feet.
* Forecast...Rise above flood stage by this evening and continue to
rise to near 15.1 feet by early Saturday morning. The river will
fall below flood stage by Tuesday morning.
* Impact...At 13.0 feet...The basements of businesses along the river
begin to flood.
* Impact...At 12.5 feet...River Street in downtown Durand begins to
flood.
There is also a flood watch in effect for the Mississippi river at Wabasha. Here are some details:
The National Weather Service in La Crosse WI has issued a
* Flood Watch for
The Mississippi River At Wabasha
* from Monday morning to Thursday March 24.
* At 9:15 AM Thursday the stage was 9.2 feet.
* Minor flooding is possible.
* Flood stage is 12.0 feet.
* Forecast...Flood stage may be reached by Monday morning. The river
is forecast to reach a crest near 12.1 feet by Monday evening.
Listen to NOAA weather radio or check your NWS web site for details of flood watches and warnings in your area.
A NOAA weather radio could save your life during flash flooding or other severe weather.