Brrr-aving the storm
Old Man Winter came calling again, lurking in the Minneota area beginning Friday morning, producing Arctic-like temperatures and a major snowstorm that halted travel and closed schools.
Snowmobile enthusiasts and kids who enjoy "snow days" might have been thrilled with this storm. The rest of the people ... not so much. "After awhile, you start feeling like you are stranded on an island because you can only go so far," said one Minneota resident.
"You can only find so many things to keep yourself occupied. But it's better than being outdoors in these conditions." The Minneota area was hit with approximately five inches of snow on Friday, with wind gusts up to 45 miles per hour producing whiteout conditions on Saturday.
The winds finally began to subside on Sunday. The Lyon County Sheriff's Department reported at 4:24 p.m. on Friday that all county plows would be pulled off the road until 6 a.m. on Sunday.
The Minnesota State Patrol reported that there were 218 car accidents, 230 spin-outs and six jack-knifed semi-trucks on Minnesota roads between Friday and Saturday. There were also 26 people reportedly injured -- one seriously -- on state highways and roads during the storm. A majority of the schools throughout the state were closed on Friday.
Minneota school administrators announced on Thursday that "due to the forecast, Minneota Public Schools will be closed Friday, Jan. 17. This will be an e-learning day. Teachers will be available by email throughout the day."
St. Edward School, which shares buses with the public school, was also closed on Friday. Scheduled school and Community Ed athletic and extracurricular events on Friday and Saturday were also postponed or cancelled in Minneota.
The Minneota Public Library was closed on Saturday. Some of the downtown businesses either closed early or were not open for business on Friday and Saturday. "It wasn't worth staying open because I figured very few people would brave the weather to go out," said one business owner.
Generally, when severe weather strikes, some locals don't have time to stock up on essentials such as food. But local residents were able to patronize Brad's Market on both Friday and Saturday, although owner Brad Minnehan decided to close two hours early (6 p.m.) on Friday.
The AgPlus C-Store was also open both days, although it closed at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. And City Hall Bar & Grill was open both days, according to manager Jordan Dresson.
KSTP-TV meteorologist Jonathan Yuhas found a silver lining within the recent cold, wind and snow. "(On Friday), even though it was snowing, the sun set after 5 p.m. for the first time since early November," he said.
"And in eight weeks, the sun will be setting close to 7:30 p.m."