Your Monday morning commute could be the worst of the winter. Winter Storm Warnings have been issued for all of central and southern Minnesota through western Wisconsin, with the exception of a small portion of southwestern Minnesota south of the Minnesota River. In these areas, a Winter Weather Advisory has been issued. Snowfall amounts in the warning area can be expected to range from 6 to 9 inches. Snowfall amounts in the advisory area can be expected to range from 3 to 6 inches.
Accumulating snow will occur across all of central and southern Minnesota into western Wisconsin Sunday afternoon through early Monday morning. The greatest snow accumulations will stretch from west central Minnesota through the Twin Cities metro to around the Eau Claire area, with lesser amounts towards northern Minnesota, southwestern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin. This system is expected to cause significant travel impacts, especially Sunday night through the Monday morning commute.
"The snow will pick up overnight, get pretty heavy, endind about day-break," said Chris O'Brien, meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Chanhassen.
Wind chills of 60 below zero to 35 below zero are expected Tuesday morning through Thursday morning in western and central Minnesota. Wind chills of 35 below zero and lower are expected Tuesday afternoon through Thursday morning in east central MN and west central Minnesota.
WCCO's Paul Douglas says, "This week may bring the coldest readings since 2004, when the mercury fell to -24F at MSP. Believe it or not, it doesn't look quite as forbidding as it did a few days ago: 4 subzero nights and 2-3 subzero days in the metro. Midweek 'highs' hover around -10F, with a wind chill of -30 to -40F. Some schools may consider closing, out of safety concerns."
"After the storm passes, it usually lets the arctic air pour down," said O'Brien. "The extent of the cold is unusual."
The extreme cold might bring the coldest temperatures to hit the Twin Cities in two decades.
"A really cold chunk of air has broken off from the arctic and is heading down our way, we're going to spend a couple of days below zero." said O'Brien.
The good news is, by next weekend, the deep freeze should lift and most of Minnesota climbs back above normal temps.
The long-range forecast calls for temperatures near 30 on Saturday.