Blizzard, freezing rain trip up post-holiday travelers
For many, warmth is on the way Tuesday
Wintry weather caused travel trouble across the nation’s northern tier for folks returning home from holiday celebrations Monday.
A blizzard buried the northern Plains under as much as 16 inches of snow, which was blown around by winds of up to 50 mph. Nearly every highway across North Dakota and the western half of South Dakota was shut down Monday, the National Weather Service said.
The North Dakota Highway Patrol warned that motorists who venture out in areas under notravel advisories go at their own risk and “may become stranded, and emergency responders may not be able to reach them safely,” the Associated Press said. The storm caused widespread power outages in the Dakotas, Nebraska and western Iowa, AP reported.
The Minot (N.D.) International Airport closed Monday because of low visibility and will remain closed until early Wednesday, the Minot Daily News said.
Though the worst of the snow fell to the west of Minneapolis, dozens of flights were delayed Monday at the city’s airport, FlightAware said.
Travel hazards will persist across the region into Tuesday, despite the storm winding down, AccuWeather said.
Elsewhere, portions of New England and New York state saw freezing rain Monday, which was forecast to persist into early Tuesday, the weather service said.
In the western USA, a new storm Tuesday will spread snow eastward into interior Washington and Oregon and the northern Rockies, the weather service said.
For the central, eastern and southern USA, winter will take a vacation Tuesday as above-average temperatures take hold. The East Coast will be particularly warm.
Afternoon high temperatures were forecast to be 10 to 25 degrees above average, the weather service reported.
A few locations in Florida, including Miami, are seeing their warmest December on record.