Winter Storm Surges, Businesses Close Early on Sunday

Updated Dec. 10, 6 a.m.

Schools: Robbinsdale Area Schools are not impacted by Golden Valley's snow emergency and will open at the usual time today. Hopkins Public Schools, like virtually most west metro school districts, has not announced that it is postponing school or closing it altogether.

Roads: Conditions are slippery and traffic gurus are reporting that snow-packed roads are causing spin-outs.

At 6 a.m., Lt. Eric Roeske of the Minnesota State Patrol confirmed that Minnesota's first snow storm of the year caused 637 crashes in less than 48 hours.

A little before 6 a.m. on Twitter, Mpls/St Paul Traffic said:

We have a bunch of wrecks and spinouts on the system right now. It'll be a very slow drive in this morning.

KARE 11's Pete Busch tweeted:

Road conditions are terrible. Icy, snow packed, might have one clear lane. Expect a longer and slower drive.

When it comes to buses, schedules should be mostly on-time. Metro Transit tweeted:

5:45 a.m. winter weather update: 148 buses on 50 routes w/ 85% on schedule + avg. delay < 3 min. Light rail, Northstar on time.

Snow accumulations: According to the National Weather Service, nearby St. Louis park received 10.2 inches of snow as of 9:45 p.m. on Dec. 9.

***

Updated Dec. 9, 8 p.m.

Accumulations: According to the National Weather Service, nearby St. Louis Park received seven inches of snow by 1:20 p.m. At 8 p.m., the snow was still falling.

Traffic: At 7 p.m., the Minnesota Department of Transportation tweeted that driving conditions on Highway 100 were difficult:

MN 100, between I-494 (Bloomington) and I-694 (Brooklyn Center): difficult driving conditions, light snow.

A little after 8 p.m., Lt. Eric Roeske of the Minnesota State Patrol reported that since 9:30 p.m. on Dec. 8,  597 crashes, including one fatal crash, had occurred.

Ski Conditions: According to Skinnyski.com, Theodore Wirth Park attracted a number of eager cross country skiers. At 4:24 p.m. on Sunday, one commenter, John Munger, said:

Park Board rolled the whole course this morning - Hap & Judy, Back-40, Skyline, Tornado Alley, JD Rivers, Eloise Butler and Quaking Bog ... Nice skiing!

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Original story, published Dec. 9, 2 p.m.

By 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 9, the snow wasn't letting up.

In the midst of Minnesota's first winter storm of the year, the Golden Valley Animal Humane Society closed all five shelter locations early and reminded residents to "stay safe!"

So far, according to Lt. Eric Roeske of the Minnesota State Patrol, the storm has caused 373 spin-outs on Twin Cities roads and 301 accidents. Thirty Two people have been injured.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation reported that one crash near Golden Valley on Interstate 394 occurred around 1:30, though no injuries were reported.

At 2 p.m. on Twitter, The Weather Channel reported that snow amounts at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport were already greater than any day last winter, with one inch of snow an hour accumulating.

According to an updated statement by the National Weather Service:

SNOW WILL CONTINUE THIS AFTERNOON AND BECOME HEAVY. BEHIND THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM...SUSTAINED NORTHWEST WINDS OF 20 TO 30 MPH ARE EXPECTED OVER WESTERN MINNESOTA THIS AFTERNOON BEFORE GRADUALLY TAPERING OFF THIS EVENING. SOME WIND GUSTS MAY EXCEED 40 TO 45 MPH. CONSIDERABLE BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW WILL RESULT IN WHITEOUT CONDITIONS MAKING TRAVEL NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE BY THIS AFTERNOON. AREAS OF BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW ARE ALSO EXPECTED FARTHER EAST...BUT LIGHTER WINDS PRECLUDE THE ISSUANCE OF A BLIZZARD WARNING AT THIS TIME.

Related articles:

Snow Emergency Declared in Golden Valley

Winter Storm 'Bearing Down' on Upper Midwest

'Near Blizzard Conditions' Could Come to Parts of Minnesota

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