Blizzard Causes Headaches In Dakotas, Minn.
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) -- Severe winds and heavy snowfall have blanketed the Dakotas and Minnesota, causing a massive pileup on Interstate 94 and shutting down buildings and roads just before New Year's.
In North Dakota, Gov. Jack Dalrymple declared a statewide storm emergency Thursday, as the state Department of Transportation closed I-94 in both directions between Jamestown and Fargo after the accident.
Cass County Sheriff's Capt. Rick Majerus said nearly 100 vehicles were involved in the pileup near Fargo. He said some people were stranded in their vehicles for several hours before rescuers could get to them.
"Cars started having trouble traversing the road and ended up in a ditch, along with semi-trucks, tractor-trailers," Majerus said.
In addition, I-29 was closed between Grand Forks, North Dakota, and the South Dakota line.
Across the Red River in Minnesota, state troopers responded to numerous accidents in which cars skidded off I-94, prompting the highway's closure from Moorhead to Alexandria. The Minnesota Highway Patrol reported two fatal accidents during Thursday's storm.
A second storm system was expected to move into the area Friday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service, and a blizzard warning was in effect for parts of North Dakota and Minnesota through Saturday morning.
With another blizzard expected Friday, groups and offices closed early and canceled or postponed events scheduled for the final days of the year.
State and county officials in North Dakota and South Dakota implored drivers to stay off the roads, which were covered by ice and obscured by gusts of snow blowing up to 45 mph. Temperatures hovered around zero with the wind chill measured at 20 below zero or colder.
The North Dakota Department of Transportation ordered its snowplows off the road due to the conditions, and Fargo's airport canceled flights.
In South Dakota, state officials urged people to avoid unnecessary travel and said more roads could be closed if the storm worsens.
"Travel conditions will be treacherous at best and could be impossible for Friday and part of Saturday," said Tom Dravland, the secretary of the department of public safety, in a statement. "We know people have New Year's Eve and New Year's Day plans, but this is a dangerous storm."
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