With 2010 ending in a thick blanket of snow, and 2011 beginning with 30 below, watch out on the roads — wherever you go.
There are 31 days in December. All but seven of those days had some trace of snow.
The snowy month ended 2010 with 18.5 inches of snow accumulation, which is 4.6 inches above the average 13.9 inches.
Kevin Kraujalis, the assistant forecaster with the National Weather Service in Duluth said the middle to the end of December had two powerful storm systems responsible for a bulk of snow.
“We had two prolonged strong low pressure systems,” he explained.
Jet streams circulating between warm and cold air speared the systems favorable for frequent snowstorms.
“It was an active storm pattern,” Kraujalis said. “There were tornadoes to the south resulting from the same system. It had a lot of strength.”
The large amounts of snow set up the new year for less-than-desirable temperatures. The first day of 2011 dipped to -22 degrees and Monday collapsed even further to -32 degrees.
“Usually when there is extreme snow, we see a good cold outbreak,” said Kraujalis of the recent cold temperatures. “A high pressure system bringing this cold air is not unusual.”
A strong surge of arctic cold dumped in the cold air that Borderland is expected to experience into February.
“This rush of cold air is here to stay until further notice,” Kraujalis said.
In fact, he predicted January to have below-normal temperatures and more snow on the way. On record, January has an average of 15.2 inches of snowfall.
“That is going to be pretty close to accurate,” Kraujalis warned. “We’re heading into another snowy period.”
To go along with the snow and add to the already cold temperatures, January is the month to watch out for wind chills. Kraujalis explained that meteorologists keep a close eye on these dangerous air movements and remind the public that they put out advisories for a reason.
“When it gets to -25 degrees, we will issue a wind chill advisory,” he said. “When it starts to get even colder, -35 to -40 below, we put out a wind chill warning.”
These advisories and warnings can’t be taken lightly. Kraujalis said it is extremely dangerous to expose skin in these temperatures and time spent outside should be as limited as possible.
For a more complete forecast, visit http://www.crh. noaa.gov/dlh.
Road conditions
Winter conditions were a “perfect storm” for challenging highway conditions over the long holiday weekend and continuing into this week, officials noted.
John Bray, special assistant to the district engineer for Minnesota Department of Transportation northeast district, said that the mixture of rain, snow and a quick dip in temperatures left ice-crusted roads in the northern portion of the state.
“It really did sock us good,” he said.
Wednesday he said the entire contingent of road crews have been working long shifts for the previous week to clear roads and treat ice. Crews are still chipping away at ice that formed from Virginia to Duluth after wet pavement froze late last week.
Northern Minnesota highways, including Highways 53 and 71 servicing Borderland, were listed in difficult to fair conditions Wednesday. But Bray said the conditions were proving fine for Minnesota motorists who are used to navigating slippery surfaces in the winter.
“The highways are as safe as the drivers who are using them,” Bray said.
He recommended drivers limit distractions, including using cell phones, changing radio stations, eating food and having deep conversations while driving.
“(Law enforcement) never responds to a crash where the road was at fault,” Bray said. “If we could eliminate dumb things, we’d have safe highways.”
And while drivers bear much of the responsibility of making wise decisions on the road, MnDOT crews have been preparing the roads to make the trek that much safer.
When road temperatures go from above freezing to well below zero as they did this week, ice treatment options change. According to a MnDOT report on winter weather road treatments, “... In extreme arctic temperatures that are common in northeastern Minnesota, there really is nothing that is fully effective at deicing roadways … the best that our crews can do under these hyper-frigid conditions is to try to improve tire traction using pure sand which is pre-wet with either salt brine or liquid magnesium chloride.”
Bray noted that northeast Minnesota roads are never fully closed, as may be seen in other parts of the state due to lack of the equipment necessary to close the road.
Common sense and attention to the road were the most important aspects of winter driving that Bray stressed.
“We all know when we’re doing something wrong,” Bray said.
For information on road conditions in Minnesota, visit www.511mn.org.
