Last of the Highways Closed by Blizzard Have Reopened
Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A Minnesota Department of Transportation official says it could take a couple weeks to get highways in southern Minnesota back to normal winter driving conditions, but a milestone in the recovery from the weekend blizzard was marked this afternoon.
For the first time since the peak of the blizzard on Sunday, every state highway in the region is open to traffic this afternoon. Conditions remain very rough in some areas but crews from the Minnesota Department of Transportation were successful today in clearing paths for vehicle traffic on Highway 63 from Zumbro Falls to Lake City and sections of Highways 30 and 43 in Fillmore County that were buried under deep snow drifts. The three highways were the last to be reopened in the aftermath of the storm, which stranded hundreds of motorists in southeastern and south-central Minnesota.
There are still a handful of areas where MnDOT is still recommending no travel. As of late Tuesday afternoon that list includes Highway 30 between Stewartville and Chatfield, Highway 16 between Dexter and Spring Valley, Highway 16 between Wykoff and Fountain, Highway 16 between Preston and Whalan, Highway 43 between I-90 and Rushford, and Highway 139 from Harmony south to the Iowa border.
All other highways in the region are rated as either completely or partially covered by snow and ice with slippery spots.