An arctic air mass is expected to bring frigid conditions not seen in nearly 25 years to the Twin Cities this week, prompting school closings and warnings to avoid the extreme cold.
A wind chill warning issued by the National Weather Service is in effect from noon Tuesday through 9 a.m. Thursday.
“This is a life-threatening situation for those spending any prolonged period outdoors without proper clothing,” according to the NWS warning statement. “Frostbite can occur quickly and even hypothermia or death if precautions are not taken.”
Temperatures will plunge and winds will pick up Tuesday night and Wednesday. The overnight low could reach 27 below zero, with a Wednesday high expected to be around 16 below zero.
Wind chills of around 51 or 52 below zero are expected Tuesday night and Wednesday, according to the NWS.
SCHOOL CLOSINGS
School districts, which canceled classes Monday due to a snowstorm, extended the closures to Tuesday and Wednesday due to the anticipated extreme cold conditions.
Districts with schools in St. Paul, Andover, Anoka, Apple Valley, Blaine, Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Champlin, Coon Rapids, Cottage Grove, Eagan, Ham Lake, Maplewood, Minneapolis, New Brighton, North and South St. Paul, Oakdale, St. Anthony, Ramsey, Rosemount, Roseville and Stillwater announced Monday that they will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday. All after-school activities also were canceled.
District-wide closings — whose major cities are included in the previous listing — include Anoka-Hennepin, Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan, North St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale, St. Paul, St. Anthony-New Brighton, and South Washington County.
The Stillwater district said it might also close schools on Thursday; officials will make a decision later this week.
Gov. Tim Walz released a statement Monday saying he’s leaving the decision of closings up to local school districts, noting that such a state mandate had only been enacted once in the past 20 years.
That past mandate was issued by Gov. Mark Dayton in January 2014 under special circumstances: It was the first day back from winter break for many students, and districts were concerned about reheating buildings and starting buses that had sat motionless for over a week. Gov. Arne Carlson also closed schools three times in the 1990s due to frigid weather.
The University of Minnesota announced Monday night that it was also calling off classes on its Twin Cities campus.
Affected are classes starting at noon or later on Tuesday and both day and evening classes on Wednesday.
The campus will remain open for all other business.
SNOW EMERGENCIES
Meanwhile, in the wake of Sunday night’s winter storm, city officials in St. Paul and Minneapolis issued snow emergencies Monday — the first of the winter — to plow residential streets.
Other cities also may declare snow emergencies across the metro area — more information can be found at individual municipal websites.
Snowfall late Sunday and into Monday morning led to numerous crashes and spinouts on roads across the state, though none involved serious or fatal injuries as of late Monday. The Twin Cities officially recorded 4.9 inches of snow during the storm, but larger totals were reported in southeastern Minnesota and southwestern Wisconsin, where up to a foot was measured.
FRIGID TEMPS HAVE A CAUSE
The unusually frigid weather is attributed to a sudden warming way above the North Pole. A sudden blast of warm air from misplaced Moroccan heat last month made the normally super chilly air temperatures 20 miles above the North Pole rapidly rise about 125 degrees.
That split the so-called polar vortex into pieces, which then started to wander, according to Judah Cohen, a winter storm expert for Atmospheric Environmental Research, a commercial firm outside Boston. One of those polar vortex pieces is responsible for the sub-zero temperatures across the Midwest this week.
WATCHING OUT FOR HOMELESS
Police and deputies said they’ll keep an extra eye out for people in dangerously cold conditions this week.
Ramsey County and Hennepin County sheriff’s offices said Monday there will be extra deputies on patrol to help transport people to warm locations. They are working with organizations that provide temporary shelter to homeless people.
Both sheriff’s offices also announced they are collecting donations of cold-weather gear, which deputies will distribute to those in need.
New jackets, hats, mittens, boots, scarves and blankets can be dropped off from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. through Wednesday at the Ramsey County sheriff’s office at 425 Grove St. in St. Paul or the patrol station at 1411 Paul Kirkwold Drive in Arden Hills.
People can also drop off items at various locations in Hennepin County, which are listed at http://bit.ly/ColdGearDonations.
The Union Gospel Mission Twin Cities will provide for more space to house homeless individuals at its Men’s Campus at 435 E. University Ave. in St. Paul.
“With severe cold weather no one can take the chance of living outside or even in their car,” said Brian Molohon, vice president of development with the Union Gospel Mission, in a Monday statement. “Lives are in danger and we want to alert the public to bring individuals to the Mission to be in a safe, warm environment over the next three days.”
And, the Twin Cities Salvation Army announced they will keep worship and service centers open to those who need warmth and safety during the extreme cold. The Salvation Army Harbor Light Center, 1010 Currie Ave. in Minneapolis, will be open 24 hours a day.
Other Salvation Army locations will be available as warming center on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
In St. Paul they are at 1019 Payne Ave. and 401 W. Seventh St. In Minneapolis they are located at 2024 Lyndale Ave. N., 2727 Central Ave. N.E., and 1604 E. Lake St. In Maplewood, at 2080 Woodlynn Ave. And in Brooklyn Park, at 10011 Noble Parkway.
WINTER CARNIVAL
Despite the frigid forecast, organizers of the St. Paul Winter Carnival said that their schedule of events has not been affected, including the popular ice sculptures at Kellogg Mall Park.
However, the Vulcan Snow Park at the State Fairgrounds will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday. That Winter Carnival activity is run and managed by the Vulcans organization.
Mara H. Gottfried contributed to this report, which includes information from the Associated Press.
Copyright 2019 Pioneer Press.