A Christmas-week blizzard could put holiday travel on ice

Holiday travelers — whether driving, flying or riding buses or trains to Christmas gatherings — may want to leave now rather than waiting until later in the week, when forecasters are predicting life-threatening conditions associated with an arctic blast that will blow into Minnesota and affect most of the Upper Midwest.

"Tuesday is definitely the best travel day of the week," said Bill Borghoff, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Chanhassen. By Thursday it may be next to impossible. Plan to change your travel plans. It's easier to change them now than later, and not risk trying to get where you are going," Borghoff said.

A polar air mass will drop 5 to 10 inches of fluffy snow on the metro area and much of Minnesota starting Tuesday night into Wednesday before the mercury sinks below zero. Sustained winds of 30 to 40 mph will blow the powder around, creating blizzard conditions that will last through Friday, particularly in western and southern Minnesota, Borghoff said.

https://www.startribune.com/a-christmas-week-blizzard-could-put-holiday-travel-on-ice/600237238/