MOORHEAD, Minn. — High winds and blowing snow forced authorities to close a number of highways in northwestern Minnesota on Friday, as dozens of crashes are being reported statewide.
So far, flights are not being impacted at MSP International but a wind gust of 61 mph has been reported.
"We aren't seeing delays due to winds at this point. If by some chance a particular aircraft needs deiced for some reason, that flight could be delayed because airlines might not deice when it's this windy. Few flights are likely to require deicing," said MSP spokesperson Pat Hogan in a statement.
Collins Brothers Towing of St. Cloud, Inc. shared a video on Facebook showing around two dozen vehicles involved in a multi-vehicle crash off of Highway 371 between Nisswa and Brainerd. The video shows emergency crews responding to numerous cars and semi trucks scattered across the roadway and in the ditch.
State Patrol Sgt. Jesse Grabow said the Highway 371 pileup happened around 11:45 a.m. near Gull Lake Drive, involving 20-30 vehicles. No life-threatening injuries were reported, and several of the people involved were taken to a local fire hall. Troopers said the crash is under investigation.
The State Patrol said the blowing snow led officials to close Interstate-94 between Moorhead and Fergus Falls, as well as U.S. Highway 10 from Moorhead to Detroit Lakes. MnDOT said the majority of those roads were reopened by 4 p.m., however officials continued to say that no travel was advised on most highways in that portion of the state.
The latest road conditions can be viewed on MnDOT's 511mn.org travel conditions map.
Sgt. Grabow posted several videos on his Twitter account showing the severity of the blowing snow conditions on I-94 on Friday morning, leading to near-whiteout conditions and zero visibility in several areas.
The National Weather Service in Grand Forks said the worst conditions were in open areas, though sheltered locations were experiencing whiteout conditions as well. Wind gusts of up to 65 to 70 mph were possible as isolated snow showers continued throughout the region.
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