'Major winter storm' headed for Minnesota
The snowstorm could shift as it passes through Nebraska and Colorado, but experts advise you start preparing jokes and excuses well ahead of time. NWS/Twitter
This year Mother Nature is offering Minnesotans a bonus to those awkward, potentially disastrous family Thanksgiving conversations: a never-ending text thread about the pre-Thanksgiving weather.
It's bad! Snowfall of six-plus inches is predicted for the Twin Cities and surrounding area, especially to the east and south, starting Tuesday night into Wednesday, when high winds will blow the accumulating flakes all around. It's a recipe for hellish highway driving, as the Star Tribune reports, and the Minnesota Department of Transportation is bracing for it already.
One of your uncles is already testing out jokes about how the state's got 800-some plows and "plenty of salt" in preparation for the first real snowfall of the season.
The snowstorm's track could shift some as it passes through Colorado and Nebraska, though any town, road, or driveway within the thick band of orange-ish yellow seen below could see a half-foot or more.
The storm is still on track Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. 6 or more inches are expected across much of the area, with the heaviest totals likely over eastern and southern MN into western WI. Gusty winds will develop later Tuesday night, which will cause blowing snow. pic.twitter.com/iy92Rf5Stc
— NWS Twin Cities (@NWSTwinCities) November 25, 2019
The conditions pose an obvious threat to anyone who'd planned on driving somewhere for Thanksgiving... though the state's apparent preparedness means highways might be ready for travel by Thursday.
Our advice* is to use this weather to cynical ends: Drive where you're invited as some sort of proof of your loyalty and courage (make sure to make a big deal about the fact you drove; repeat it several times), or dare people to come to your house as a test of theirs. You're also now free to cancel with people you felt obligated to visit but really can't stand, citing "the roads, y'know, and golly that wind."
*(This is not good advice.)
As always, we defer to Frankie MacDonald, Canadian weather YouTube phenom, whose report for this area supersedes both MnDOT and the National Weather Service, and ignores Thanksgiving altogether with advice about Chinese food, pizza, soft drinks, and tea.
Consider copy-pasting this video into that interminable Thanksgiving text thread until your beloved relatives shut up for at least a day.
