Winter storm update; whiteout conditions in some areas
The snow continues.
Snow and strong winds will continue to cause whiteout conditions in much of south-central and southwestern Minnesota into Monday evening.
Those areas are under a blizzard warning until midnight Monday night, while the Twin Cities metro area remains in a winter storm warning until midnight:
Here are details of the blizzard warning:
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URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN
1017 AM CST Mon Jan 22 2018
...TRAVEL CONDITIONS ARE RAPIDLY DETERIORATING...TRAVEL IS NOT
ADVISED ACROSS PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN MINNESOTA...
.The Blizzard Warning has been expanded northeastward to include
the Le Center, Waseca, Faribault, and Albert Lea areas and it
continues from Mankato to the south and west, including Fairmont
and St. James. The Winter Storm Warning is in effect for the rest
of south central Minnesota and most of east central Minnesota and
west central Wisconsin, including most of the Twin Cities metro.
Heavy snow has developed across south central and east central
Minnesota into western Wisconsin. Total snowfall amounts of 8 to
15 inches are likely by late this evening in the warning areas,
with amounts rapidly tapering off near the western edge. Strong
winds with gusts up to 40 MPH during the heavy snow will lead to
blizzard conditions across much of southern Minnesota. Travel
conditions are deteriorating rapidly as is not advised in some
areas. Farther northeast, winds will be in the 20 to 30 MPH range
and cause patchy blowing and drifting snow.
A wintry mix with a period of freezing rain is also possible
this morning from Albert Lea toward Eau Claire, resulting in
minor ice accumulation.
Driving conditions will deteriorate very rapidly while heading
east on I-94 or south on I-35 toward the Twin Cities. Conditions
may be drastically different in a span of only 10 to 15 miles.
MNZ075>077-084-085-093-230030-
/O.UPG.KMPX.WS.W.0002.000000T0000Z-180123T0600Z/
/O.EXA.KMPX.BZ.W.0001.000000T0000Z-180123T0600Z/
Nicollet-Le Sueur-Rice-Waseca-Steele-Freeborn-
Including the cities of St Peter, Le Sueur, Faribault, Waseca,
Owatonna, and Albert Lea
1017 AM CST Mon Jan 22 2018
...BLIZZARD WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST TONIGHT...
* WHAT...Blizzard conditions occurring. Travel will be very
dangerous to impossible, including during the evening commute.
Additional snow accumulations of 8 to 13 inches are expected.
* WHERE...Portions of south central Minnesota.
* WHEN...Until midnight CST tonight.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Winds gusting as high as 40 mph will cause
whiteout conditions in blowing snow. Significant drifting of
the snow is likely.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Blizzard Warning means severe winter weather conditions are
expected or occurring. Falling and blowing snow with strong winds
and poor visibilities are likely. This will lead to whiteout
conditions, making travel extremely dangerous. Do not travel. If
you must travel, have a winter survival kit with you. If you get
stranded, stay with your vehicle. The latest road conditions for
Minnesota can be found at 511mn.org and for Wisconsin at
511wi.gov, or by calling 5 1 1 in either state.
And for the Mankato area southward:
MNZ074-082-083-091-092-230030-
/O.CON.KMPX.BZ.W.0001.000000T0000Z-180123T0600Z/
Brown-Watonwan-Blue Earth-Martin-Faribault-
Including the cities of New Ulm, St James, Mankato, Fairmont,
and Blue Earth
1017 AM CST Mon Jan 22 2018
...BLIZZARD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST
TONIGHT...
* WHAT...Blizzard conditions occurring. Travel will be very
dangerous to impossible. Additional snow accumulations of 9 to
12 inches are expected.
* WHERE...Brown, Watonwan, Blue Earth, Martin and Faribault
Counties.
* WHEN...Until midnight CST tonight.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Winds gusting as high as 40 mph will
cause whiteout conditions in blowing snow. Significant
drifting of the snow is likely.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Blizzard Warning means severe winter weather conditions are
expected or occurring. Falling and blowing snow with strong winds
and poor visibilities are likely. This will lead to whiteout
conditions, making travel extremely dangerous. Do not travel. If
you must travel, have a winter survival kit with you. If you get
stranded, stay with your vehicle. The latest road conditions for
Minnesota can be found at 511mn.org and for Wisconsin at
511wi.gov, or by calling 5 1 1 in either state.
Nobles County in southwestern Minnesota is also in a blizzard warning until midnight Monday night.
Winter storm warnings continue until midnight Monday night for the Twin Cities metro area, southeastern Minnesota and much of western Wisconsin.
The metro area winter storm warning details, from the Twin Cities NWS office:
MNZ060-062-063-067>070-078-WIZ014>016-023>028-230030-
/O.CON.KMPX.WS.W.0002.000000T0000Z-180123T0600Z/
Hennepin-Ramsey-Washington-Sibley-Carver-Scott-Dakota-Goodhue-
Polk-Barron-Rusk-St. Croix-Pierce-Dunn-Pepin-Chippewa-Eau Claire-
Including the cities of Minneapolis, St Paul, Stillwater,
Gaylord, Chaska, Shakopee, Hastings, Red Wing, Osceola,
Rice Lake, Ladysmith, Hudson, River Falls, Prescott, Menomonie,
Durand, Chippewa Falls, and Eau Claire
1017 AM CST Mon Jan 22 2018
...WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST
TONIGHT...
* WHAT...Heavy snow occurring. Plan on difficult travel
conditions, including during the evening commute. Additional
snow accumulations of 7 to 13 inches are expected.
* WHERE...Portions of northwest and west central Wisconsin and
central, east central and southeast Minnesota.
* WHEN...Until midnight CST tonight.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Winds gusting as high as 30 mph will
cause patchy blowing and drifting snow.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Winter Storm Warning means significant amounts of snow, sleet
and ice are occurring. This will make travel very hazardous or
impossible. The latest road conditions for Minnesota can be found
at 511mn.org and for Wisconsin at 511wi.gov, or by calling
5 1 1 in either state.
Snow totals could reach 12 inches or more in the far southeastern part of the seven county metro area by Monday night, with just a few inches along the far northwestern edge of the metro area:
The highest snow totals are expected to run from south-central Minnesota to west-central Wisconsin.
With the metro area on the edge of the heaviest snow, there could be huge differences in snow amounts over distances of just a few miles.
Double-digit totals are possible in the southeastern part of the metro area.
Minneapolis and St. Paul could see 6 to 9 inch totals, a bit more if the storm track veers a little bit to the northwest.
Check late afternoon updates.
Big picture
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's North American Mesoscale forecast model shows the low-pressure system spinning northeastward Monday afternoon and Monday night:
Here is the Monday and Monday night snowfall depiction from the NAM model:
Updates
The NWS offices in the Twin Cities, La Crosse, Wis., Duluth and Sioux Falls, S.D. have interactive maps to find forecast updates for your specific location.
Updated weather information can be heard on the Minnesota Public Radio Network, and you can read about weather updates on the MPR News live weather blog.
You can get road updated road conditions from the Minnesota Department of Transportation and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.