A white Christmas came to Minnesota in force.
Blizzard conditions led to accidents, closed roads and left thousands of people without power in the Mankato region.
A winter mix arrived in Mankato around noon. New snow stopped falling around 9 p.m., but high winds continued to cause bleaching conditions well into the night.
Shelters were opened at the Lake Crystal Recreation Center, Madison Lake City Hall, a church in Madelia and the National Guard Armory in Fairmont for stranded motorists and homes without power.
Several highways west and south of Mankato were closed Wednesday afternoon due to crashes or bleaching conditions, including Highway 60 and Interstate 90.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation issued no-ride advisories for many other highways in the area. The Blue Earth County and Brown County Sheriff’s Offices also issued recommendations to avoid unnecessary travel.
The National Guard was activated to assist stranded motorists in parts of the state, including Martin County, where a tank-type vehicle was needed.
The non-life threatening injury crashes occurred on state highways near Winthrop and Sleepy Eye.
On Highway 14 at 3:30 p.m. there were five vehicles that collided or ran off the road between Sleepy Eye and Janesville. The road was closed west of Sleepy Eye. On Highway 169 at 5:30 pm there were three crashed vehicles and two off the highway between Highway 60 and Henderson.
Nicollet and Waseca counties were among the agencies that removed snow plows from the road from Wednesday afternoon through Thursday morning because visibility was so poor. Blue Earth County stopped plowing at dusk.
The storm was so fierce that even Santa stayed home. Old St. Nick and his escorts had to cancel plans to parade through Courtland in a fire engine.
Hundreds of area residents were without power, many of them for several hours. Nearly 600 Xcel Energy customers were without power in the Lake Crystal and Good Thunder areas when the storm struck. As of 8 p.m., Xcel reported more than 1,000 customers without power in Mapleton, Good Thunder and Delavan, and a power outage affecting nearly 400 people near St. Peter and Cleveland.
BENCO Electric Cooperative reported that more than 1,000 members outside of Mankato and in the Blue Earth region were without power at 5 p.m. The number was less than 600 at 8 p.m.
BENCO and the Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Office warned affected residents that it could take hours before the high winds subside and power can be restored. The Sheriff’s Office reminded affected individuals to be careful to avoid fire or carbon monoxide poisoning if they use an alternative heat source.
The National Weather Service had not released a total snowfall for the Mankato area as of press time, saying it was difficult to get accurate measurements due to all the snow blowing. It had forecast 2-4 inches of accumulation on Tuesday and increased the forecast to 6-8 inches on Wednesday morning.
A snowstorm advisory originally issued only for the western tip of Minnesota expanded to the Mankato area Wednesday morning and most of the state by afternoon. The warning remained in effect until 6 a.m. Thursday.
Wind gusts of up to 46 mph were recorded at Mankato Regional Airport and up to 53 mph at New Ulm Municipal Airport and over 60 mph at Fairmont.
Many cities in the area have declared snow emergencies, requiring parked vehicles to be removed from the roads.
Cold temperatures and strong winds are expected to persist through Thursday, with a wind chill that could hit -31.
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