A fresh coat of white; Austin sees about 9 inches of snow
Published 10:24 am Wednesday, January 25, 2017
- Snow forms on the head and shoulders of the statue in front of the Spam Museum. Herald File Photo
Austin and Mower County woke up to a blanket of snow and closed schools Wednesday.
A winter storm warning remained in effect until 6 p.m. after about 9 inches of snow fell across the area overnight.
All area schools were closed.
About 6 inches fell in Austin by 10:30 p.m. Tuesday, and Lyle saw 9 inches, according to The National Weather Service in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. About 9.5 inches was observed in parts of Austin.
An additional 2 to 4 inches of snow was possible on Wednesday.
This morning, the Minnesota Department of Transportation listed local roads as completely covered.
Looking ahead, the weather should remain relatively quiet for the rest of this week with highs in the mid-20s and a slight chance of snow overnight Saturday.
Jason Richard, owner of Austin Acupuncture, shovels snow from the walkway of his business underneath a canopy of snow.
Snow emergency
The city of Austin issued a snow emergency starting at 8 a.m. Wednesday.
Snow emergencies last for three days or until they are canceled.
Parking in city business areas will be prohibited from 1 to 8 a.m. during the 72-hour snow emergency.
Business areas include the midtown area, the Sterling Shopping Center, the Hormel Foods Corp. plant area and the East Side businesses.
All vehicles on streets, avenues, places and drives in the city from 8 a.m. to 8 a.m. the next day must be parked only on the side of the street with even numbers postal addresses on even-numbered days of the month. Similarly, they shall be parked only on the odd-numbered side of the street on odd-numbered days of the month.
Snow clings to the branches of tree downtown.
