Storm whips up blizzards, dumps snow in Dakotas, Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Post-holiday travelers were finding driving difficult as a winter storm dumped heavy snow and whipped up gusty winds across parts of the Dakotas and Minnesota today.

Up to 11 inches of snow had fallen in the Moorhead-Alexandria area of western Minnesota by midafternoon today, and it was still snowing, said meteorologist Tyler Hasenstein of the Twin Cities National Weather Service.

The line of snow ended just northwest of the Twin Cities around Elk River, Hasenstein said. The snowfall peaked around 3 inches at the Minneapolis airport, then rain starting early Thursday melted the snowpack.

Officials in North Dakota issued a no-travel advisory for the eastern part of the state due to icy roads and reduced visibility. Blustery winds were causing blizzard conditions in Jamestown, North Dakota, and in northern South Dakota, where transportation officials reported visibility was down to a quarter-mile along a stretch of Highway 10.

Bus service for Fargo, N.D., and neighboring Moorhead, Minn., was suspended this afternoon because of worsening road conditions. Service is expected to resume Friday with a normal schedule.

The National Weather Service issued blizzard warnings for central South Dakota, eastern North Dakota and western Minnesota. The storm was expected to drop more than a foot of snow in the region before ending Friday.