Snowstorm slams Montgomery

Montgomery residents braced themselves on Tuesday when a powerful snowstorm swept over the state. 

According to the National Weather Service, snow totals ranged from eight inches in St. Peter to six inches in Le Center, to 10.5 inches in Lakeville. 

The slow-churning storm’s blizzard conditions resulted in an early release for Tri-City United students on Tuesday, and a change to Wednesday’s school schedule. The schedule called for an early release, which was changed to a full day, then changed to a two-hour late start, and finally called off due to bad road conditions.

With the storm in full force, the Minnesota Department of Transportation advised no travel in southern Minnesota as wind gusts reached 45 miles per hour, whipping the snow into white-out conditions. Officials closed I-90 west of Albert Lea around 2 p.m. due to hazardous conditions. The State Patrol reported more than 375 crashes across Minnesota as of 8 p.m. on Tuesday. 

Like many cities across the state, Montgomery The City of Montgomery declared a snow emergency to allow plows to clear streets. During a snow emergency all vehicles must be removed from the roads until they are plowed from curb to curb.