Minnesota Weather: 19+ Inches Of Snowfall Reported In Twin Cities

RESOURCES: School Closings | Live Radar | Weather App

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The first major snowstorm of the season came through southern Minnesota on Friday and Saturday, and snowfall totals varied throughout region, with upwards of 20 inches reported in the eastern suburbs of the Twin Cities.

The snowfall was over by the time most Minnesotans woke up on Saturday, and clean-up should be relatively easy, as there won’t be any howling winds or bitter cold temperatures.

In the east metro, a band of snow fell at about 2 inches an hour for several hours. According to WCCO’s Weather Watcher Network, the highest snowfall totals of 18-19.5 inches were recorded in Woodbury. Eagan reported 15 inches, with 14 inches tabulated in Farmington.

Areas to the north missed out on the major snow, with Little Falls reporting 1 inch. But down near Maple Grove, Weather Watchers reported 4.5 inches, with over 9 inches reported in Chanhassen, St. Paul, and Edina. South of the metro, there was still between 7 and 9 inches of accumulation. Meteorologist Mike Augustyniak reports a 15″ range in snowfall totals in 45 miles across the metro area.

Credit: CBS

Saturday will be sunny and clear, though temperatures will stay below freezing throughout the day. That means whatever snow-melt happens will quickly freeze again overnight. But a warming trend will start on Sunday, with temperatures expected to climb above freezing.

Road Conditions, Crashes

According to the Minnesota State Patrol, there were 232 crashes, 134 spin-outs and 14 jackknifed statewide between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m. In those incidents, 19 people were hurt, but none fatally. After nightfall, Metro Transit said that about half of its buses were running behind schedule in the Twin Cities, with an average delay of nearly 10 minutes.

Cities Declare Snow Emergencies

Minneapolis and St. Paul were among cities that declared snow emergencies. Be careful of parking on the street; Day 1 rules in Minneapolis began on Friday. That means that plows have cleared emergency routes, and will begin working on the even side of the streets on Saturday. St. Paul crews will start plowing Day Routes starting Saturday morning.

As for the suburbs, snow emergencies have been declared in Crystal, St. Louis Park, New Hope, Eden Prairie, Richfield, and Brooklyn Park, among other cities. (For more information on snow emergency rules in Minnesota, click here.)

Snow In Minnesota, Tornadoes In Central U.S.

Saturday’s snow wasn’t the only big weather-related event. The parent storm system from Minnesota’s storm is in western Wisconsin and headed for Chicago. But it created a massive severe weather outbreak in the middle part of the country with over 70 feared to be dead in Kentucky.

Tornado watches and warnings were posted in nine states from Texas to the Great Lakes, and the NWS is working to determine if a single tornado ripped its way over 200 miles, which if true, would be the longest-track tornado ever recorded in the U.S.

The Next Big Weather-Maker

The warmup will continue into Wednesday, when it could hit 50 degrees in the evening. Rain could develop in the later hours of the afternoon, with a potential for thunderstorms. The storms shouldn’t be severe, and will instead switch us back to colder temperatures.

Credit: CBS

The warmup means that a white Christmas still isn’t guaranteed. Outside of the major accumulation in the eastern suburbs, there’s a chance that all of the snow could melt by Thursday.

For context, the average high temperature for mid-December in the Twin Cities is in the mid-20s. The average low is about 12 degrees.

Source: CBS Minnesota