Blustery conditions heading into the weekend

Wintery weather on Thursday has lead to closed roads and no travel advisories in portions of the area as blustery conditions are expected to continue heading into the weekend.

Despite Mankato not getting hit nearly as hard as expected with Thursday’s wintery weather, our neighbors to the west weren’t so lucky. From rain to snow, to rain water freezing leading to icy spots as temperatures drop, and strong winds blowing snow around leading to drastically reduced visibility, road conditions for areas west of Mankato are ranging from no travel advisories to closed. Road conditions are projected to improve throughout the day despite strong winds/blustery conditions continuing. Areas of blowing snow leading to reduced visibility and drifting remain possible across the area, especially to the west/southwest of Mankato where more snow fell throughout Thursday.

Temperatures throughout Friday will be rather bitter with highs topping out in the low to mid-teens across the area. However, with the strong winds mixed in, wind chill values will hover between -5 and -15 throughout the day and into the overnight hours. Skies will start off on the sunny side before becoming mostly cloudy by the mid-afternoon hours. Winds will continue to come from the northwest up to 30 mph with gusts up to 40 mph at times. Temperatures will dip into the single digits overnight as winds remain strong heading into Saturday morning.

Saturday will remain on the blustery side with mostly cloudy skies through the first half of the day. We will see gradual clearing through the afternoon and early afternoon hours as temperatures hover in the upper-teens and low-20s. Winds will remain strong up to 25 mph with gusts up to 35 mph at times. This could lead to areas of reduced visibility as well as wind chills throughout the day. As skies become clear, temperatures will gradually drop back into the single digits by Sunday morning with wind chill values likely below zero overnight.

Sunday will remain on the windy but sunny side with temperatures rising into the low-30s. Winds will continue to range up to 20 mph with gusts up to 25 mph at times. Again, some areas may experience pockets of reduced visibility due to blowing snow. Skies will gradually become partly cloudy overnight as temperatures dip into the mid-20s by Monday morning.

Monday is the first official day of Spring! We will see partly cloudy skies with spring like temperatures hovering in the low-40s. Winds will remain breezy between 10 and 15 mph with gusts continuing to reach up to 20 mph at times. Partly cloudy skies will gradually become mostly cloudy overnight as temperatures dip into the mid-20s by Tuesday morning.

Tuesday will be on the cloudy side with a breeze sticking around as temperatures hover in the low to mid-40s across the area. Tuesday afternoon light rain chances move into the area, though we may see a rain/freezing rain mix. This will lead to slick spots on the roads across the area as freezing rain is rain that freezes on contact with the surface/objects it lands on. Winds will range between 10 and 15 mph with gusts up to 20 mph at times. Showers to a freezing rain mix will become more consistent and widespread overnight as temperatures dip into the mid-30s by Wednesday morning.

Wednesday will remain on the gloomy side with a breeze mixed in. Temperatures will hover in the mid-40s despite the cloudy skies and winds reaching up to 20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph at times. Rain showers to a freezing rain mix will continue throughout the day and into the overnight hours. Temperatures will dip into the mid-30s overnight into Thursday morning.

Thursday will continue with the rain/freezing rain mix as temperatures rise back into the mid-40s through the afternoon hours. Winds will also remain breezy up to 20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph at times. Temperatures are projected to dip into the upper-20s overnight which means the rain/freezing rain mix may transition into a rain/freezing rain/snow mix overnight.

Friday will be on the chillier side with highs topping out in the mid-30s through the afternoon hours. We could continue to see a rain/freezing rain/snow mix due to temperatures hovering in the mid-30s. Winds will continue to be breezy up to 20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph at times. Friday night will remain cloudy as the mixed precipitation slowly wraps up. Temperatures will dip into the upper-20s by Saturday morning.

Next weekend is looking to be on the more mild side with a mix of partly cloudy and mostly cloudy skies. We will see highs hover in the low-40s throughout the weekend with winds continuing to range up to 15 mph with gusts up to 20 mph at times. Temperatures Saturday night will dip into the upper-20s, while temperatures Sunday night dip into the low-30s.

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