Light snow leads to hundreds of crashes on Minnesota highways; more snow in forecast

Authorities respond to a rollover crash along Interstate 94
Authorities respond to a rollover crash along Interstate 94 near Alexandria, Minn., on Friday.
Minnesota State Patrol

Authorities responded to nearly 400 crashes on snow-covered Minnesota highways from Friday afternoon through Saturday morning.

There wasn't a lot of snow — just seven-tenths of an inch at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport; nine-tenths of an inch at St. Cloud — but it caused a lot of problems for drivers.

Gusty north winds combined with the light snow to create very low visibilities in parts of western Minnesota. The State Patrol and the Minnesota Department of Transportation issued a no-travel advisory for U.S. Highway 2 between East Grand Forks and Crookston, Minn., on Friday night "due to high winds and blowing snow causing no visibility."

Authorities respond to a crash along Interstate 694
Authorities respond to a crash along Interstate 694 in Oakdale, Minn., on Saturday. Roads around the Twin Cities and across much of Minnesota were icy after light snow overnight.
Minnesota Department of Transportation

That advisory was lifted early Saturday, but a flurry of crashes continued across the state.

Between 3 p.m. Friday and 7:30 a.m. Saturday, the Patrol reported 382 crashes on state highways, and another 263 vehicles that went off the road. There were no reports of serious injuries or fatalities from those crashes.

More snow is forecast across much of Minnesota this weekend — one round on Saturday afternoon and evening, and another later Sunday. That will be followed by another shot of arctic air next week; find forecast details on the Updraft blog.

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