Winter Storm Watch: Historic Snow Headed for Southeast Minnesota

Welcome to March in Minnesota, where you never know what Mother Nature has planned. Residents in southeast Minnesota are preparing for a wild weekend with heavy snow creating dangerous conditions.

Earlier this week, two feet of snow was predicted between Saturday night and Sunday night, but those totals have been updated. See the latest and read about the winter storm watch just issued for the region below.

Winter Storm Watch For Southeast Minnesota

A powerful winter storm expected this weekend could bring near-historic snowfall totals to parts of the Upper Midwest, according to the National Weather Service.

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Forecasters say a large band of heavy snow may produce 12 to 18 inches of accumulation, with localized totals approaching 24 inches.

The exact placement of the heaviest snow remains uncertain, but the highest confidence is currently between the Twin Cities and Rochester in southeast Minnesota and along and north of the Interstate 94 corridor in western Wisconsin.

Areas just south of the main band, including parts of northeast Iowa and southwest Wisconsin, could see a sharp drop-off in snowfall totals.

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In addition to heavy snow, strong winds are expected to develop Sunday afternoon through Monday morning, with gusts of 35 to 50 mph. Those winds could create widespread blowing and drifting snow and potentially blizzard conditions, especially west of the Mississippi River.

The NWS says this storm will likely cause major travel disruptions across the region, with some roads potentially becoming impassable.

A Winter Storm Watch is in effect from Saturday evening through Monday afternoon for portions of north-central and northeast Iowa and southeast Minnesota, including cities such as Rochester, Winona, Austin, Decorah, and Charles City.

The National Weather Service says travel could become very difficult to impossible, with blowing snow significantly reducing visibility and hazardous conditions potentially affecting the Monday morning commute.

Residents are urged to prepare for possible blizzard conditions and monitor updated forecasts as the storm track becomes clearer.

Top 10 Items People in Minnesota Stock Up On When They Hear "Storm"

I am pretty sure that as soon as the word "storm" shows up in the forecast, people in Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin are just trained to hop in their cars and go to the store. Stocking up on supplies becomes our #1 priority and we shop like we have absolutely nothing in our house to eat. So, we will up our carts with all "the things" and hope we grabbed enough to make it through the storm.

FYI - we will make it through the storm, and some of us will do that with Double Stuffed Oreos. Some of us will not...because the store shelf was empty by the time we got there.

Below are a few of the top items that we grab at the last minute before the storm hits.

Gallery Credit: Jessica On The Radio