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Sunday, November 11 2012 4:20 PM EST2012-11-11 21:20:27 GMT
Scott Wasserman / FOX 9 News
Sunday will be a day of clean-up for many residents in the west metro after a strong wave of storms swept across the Twin Cities overnight.
Sunday will be a day of clean-up for many residents in the west metro after a strong wave of storms swept across the Twin Cities overnight.
MINNEAPOLIS (KMSP) -
A dusting of snow overnight made for slippery roads throughout the Twin Cities metro Monday morning. The Minnesota State Patrol recorded approximately 50 crashes and incidents of vehicles off the road during the morning commute.
Most of the crashes and spinouts happened on ramps to and from metro highways. No serious injuries were reported.
A Metro Transit bus spun sideways on southbound 35W at Lake Street around 8 a.m., bringing traffic to a stop. A trooper ended up pushing the bus along with a squad car.
Other traffic-crippling crashes were reported on Highway 169 at Highway 7 and Highway 52 at the Concord Street exit. Some commuters reported their usual travel times were tripled.
The snow started falling around 11 p.m. Sunday, leaving a light coating on the ground and roads. By 8 a.m., any signs of snow on metro highways had been pushed to the shoulder, but conditions are still slippery in some spots.
SO WHERE WAS THE SALT?
As many drivers struggled to make it safely from point A to point B, many wondered why the roads were so slick with such little snow.
"Did they even throw salt in the streets?" asked Andreas Ariza. "It didn't seem like there was anything on the roads."
That's because there wasn't -- at least, not until later. By late morning, ramps and frontage roads were so icey that the Minnesota State Patrol shut some down so that plows could start unloading salt, which quickly cleared up the problem.
MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL FORECAST
Slowly climbing to a high of 29 by Monday afternoon. Mostly cloudy skies and a chilly breeze keep a few random snowflakes and flurries around through the evening. Clear and cold teens Monday night before a return to the 40s on Tuesday afternoon.
