By Tim Nelson

Some parts of Minnesota are digging out from more than a foot of snow Tuesday morning as skies clear ahead of the new year.

The National Weather Service says Brooks, Minn., near Thief River Falls reported 16 inches of snow in the last 24 hours. Bemidji is also reporting more than a foot of snow since Monday morning, with reports of 2 inches of new snow around St. Cloud, 3.5 inches in Mankato and an additional 1.1 inches of snow at the Duluth airport.

The Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport reported about 3 inches Monday night, and Eau Claire, Wis., set a new snowfall record with 8.2 inches.

State and local plow crews have been out all night, and Minnesota Department of Transportation plow cameras show pavement is visible — although covered with patches of ice and snow — throughout most of the state. Major freeways in the Twin Cities are clear of snow and ice, but remain wet from Monday’s storm. Icy and snow-covered roads led to more than 700 crashes or spinouts, the State Patrol said.

Temperatures have fallen into the single digits in northern Minnesota, and the upper teens and 20s in the Twin Cities and south.

Skies should be clearing Tuesday, with peeks of sunshine in the afternoon. Clouds return in the evening, for a mostly cloudy and warmer New Year’s Day across Minnesota.