Icy conditions close schools, hinder motorists on Owatonna

OWATONNA — Travel plans and daily operations ground to a halt Monday afternoon as a blizzard blanketed southern Minnesota.

Wind gusts up to 40 mph coupled with light snow and existing icy conditions sent cars and trucks off the roads throughout Steele County and the surrounding area.

Owatonna Schools were not holding class due to a teacher work day, however, other schools closed early and canceled activities. Riverland Community College canceled classes after 1 p.m. due to the weather.

Steele County was under a blizzard warning until midnight Tuesday.

Tony Zaleski, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Chanhassen, said Monday about an inch of accumulation was expected along with a drop in temperature.

“It’s only just about an inch of accumulation, but the winds are going to be the biggest problem,” Zaleski said.

Winds are what cause a blizzard warning over a winter storm warning. When the area is placed in a blizzard warning, it has little to do with snowfall amounts and everything to do with wind speeds, Zaleski said. Storms which bring winds greater than 35 mph are classified as blizzards.

“The kicker is winds of 35 mph or greater will bring visibility to 1/4 mile or less at times,” Zaleski said. “It’s mainly based on the wind speed, whereas a winter storm warning is based on snowfall or a combination of four to six inches of snow with a lot of wind.”

At about 12:30 p.m. the Minnesota Department of Transportation and the Minnesota State Patrol closed Highway 14 from Sleepy Eye to New Ulm due to a serious multi-vehicle crash. As of press time, Highway 14 remained closed until further notice. At 3:30 p.m., all state highways in south central and southwestern Minnesota including Interstate 90 from the South Dakota border to Albert Lea were closed.

MnDOT announced a no travel advisory throughout south central and southwestern Minnesota due to white-out conditions on many roads.

Within Steele County, Sheriff Gary Ringhofer said the county had not had a high number of off the road vehicles but an injury crash was reported in the afternoon at County Road 80 and U.S. Highway 14 East. A vehicle rolled over twice but only minor injuries were reported.

“With the wind and blowing right now, visibility is very, very poor. Roads are getting slick,” Ringhofer said. He added that people should not travel throughout the county unless absolutely necessary.

The weather poses not only challenges to drivers but to rescue personnel too.

“Definitely any time you have conditions like this and (deputies) have to respond to an accident or a situation, it’s very much of a safety concern,” Ringhofer said.

Motorists can be fined up to $1,000 and/or 90 days in jail for traveling when advised against it. In addition, if travelers need to be rescued from a closed road, other expenses and penalties will apply.

Roads are expected to clear up by later today.

Temperatures will drop to about 5 below overnight with wind chills of 15 below to 25 below remaining throughout the day today.

“Winds will be throttling back to 10 to 15 mph after midnight (Tuesday),” Zaleski said.

For updated travel information, call 511 or visit the People’s Press online at www.owatonna.com.

Wendy Reuer can be reached at 444-1565.

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Member Opinions: By: Brian_Sanburn on 1/25/10 "Steele County was under a blizzard warning until midnight Tuesday." How nice it is to read, at 10:30 on Monday evening, that the "blizzard warning" is in effect "until midnight Tuesday," NOT "midnight tonight." "Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!" to the OPP writer/editor/proofreader! Beyond that, the weather stinks. But hey...only 28 days to baseball! (At least that's what I've been told.) By: Bobo777 on 1/25/10 Brian, it's AP style. Don't hate the OPP for sticking to the format. By: oops on 1/26/10 Remember to VOTE today! By: B-STING on 1/26/10 Motorists can be fined up to $1,000 ...for traveling when advised against it. Boy we must have made a lot of money yesterday. By: Wrath on 1/26/10 Wow, this was the lead story on election day? Here's another title you could have used. "SURPRISE! It's cold in January, just like last year and the year before!" Thanks. Hey, loved the little flashy add in the lower left hand corner of the front page that made it look like the election was tomorrow. Way to go OPP.
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