The National Weather Service in the Twin Cities has issued a Winter Storm Warning for Wright County, as a low pressure system moving across Minnesota is expected to drop nearly a foot of new snow on the area Thursday night and Friday. The warning runs from 1 p.m. Thursday through 7 p.m. Friday.
The NWS has put the probability of significant snowfall Friday at 100 percent, with heavy snow expected throughout the day. That will make for a tough commute to and from work for drivers in the Twin Cities area.
According to the National Weather Service:
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW… WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM THURSDAY TO 7 PM CDT FRIDAY. THE WINTER STORM WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT.
* TIMING… PRECIPITATION WILL BEGIN AS A LIGHT WINTRY MIX TONIGHT WHICH WILL BECOME STEADIER THURSDAY MORNING… AND TRANSITION TO ALL SNOW FROM NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST LATE THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING. THE SNOW WILL BE HEAVY AT TIMES THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY MORNING BEFORE TAPERING OFF FRIDAY AFTERNOON.
* SNOW ACCUMULATION… 8 TO 14 INCHES… WITH THE HEAVIEST AMOUNTS EXPECTED ROUGHLY ALONG A LINE FROM REDWOOD FALLS AND NEW ULM TO MONTICELLO AND CAMBRIDGE. SNOW AMOUNTS WILL BE LOWEST SOUTH AND EAST OF THE TWIN CITIES METRO WHERE A WINTRY MIX MAY PERSIST THE LONGEST.
* WIND… NORTHEAST 10 TO 15 MPH BECOMING NORTHWEST AND INCREASING TO 15 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 40 MPH LATE THURSDAY NIGHT.
* IMPACTS… TRAVEL WILL BE HAZARDOUS THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY. AS WINDS INCREASE… SOME BLOWING SNOW WILL RESULT IN OPEN AREAS. THIS WILL ALSO BE A WET SNOW WHICH WILL BE DIFFICULT TO SHOVEL.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW MEANS SEVERE WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW ARE FORECAST THAT WILL MAKE TRAVEL DANGEROUS. ONLY TRAVEL IN AN EMERGENCY. IF YOU MUST TRAVEL… KEEP AN EXTRA FLASHLIGHT… FOOD… AND WATER IN YOUR VEHICLE IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY.
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More Information
… SIGNIFICANT WINTER STORM IMMINENT FOR THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY…
.A WINTER STORM WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED FROM SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA THROUGH NORTHERN WISCONSIN… INCLUDING THE TWIN CITIES METROPOLITAN AREA. A WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR STEVENS… POPE… AND TODD COUNTIES IN WESTERN MINNESOTA… AND SOUTHEAST OF A LINE FROM BLUE EARTH IN FARIBAULT COUNTY MINNESOTA TO MENOMONIE AND BLOOMER IN WISCONSIN.
A POWERFUL STORM SYSTEM WITH COPIOUS AMOUNTS OF MOISTURE WILL TRACK FROM THE SOUTHERN PLAINS TONIGHT TO MISSOURI BY THURSDAY NIGHT AND TO MICHIGAN BY FRIDAY NIGHT. A LARGE BATCH OF PRECIPITATION… BEGINNING AS A WINTRY MIX… WILL TURN TO ALL SNOW THURSDAY AFTERNOON OR EARLY EVENING AND CONTINUE THROUGH FRIDAY. THERE IS STILL SOME UNCERTAINTY AS TO WHEN THE MIX WILL TURN TO ACCUMULATING SNOW FROM FAR SOUTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA TO WEST CENTRAL WISCONSIN.
SNOW WILL BE HEAVY AT TIMES THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY WITH 1 TO 2 INCH PER HOUR RATES POSSIBLE. THUNDERSNOW CANNOT BE RULED OUT… WHICH WOULD ENHANCE THE SNOWFALL RATES FURTHER. TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 6 TO 14 INCHES ARE EXPECTED… WITH THE HEAVIEST AMOUNTS ALONG A LINE FROM FROM REDWOOD FALLS AND NEW ULM TO MONTICELLO AND CAMBRIDGE.