After spending the last four days celebrating the Whiteout here in Winnipeg an unexpected twist has occurred which is keeping the Winnipeg Jets plane out of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul region due to a….Whiteout. The Jets left Winnipeg a few hours earlier than previously planned today in hopes to get out ahead of the spring snow storm traveling across Minnesota.
But they could not get out ahead of the massive snow storm which moved across the region and which the National Weather Service describes as follows:
..BLIZZARD WARNING EXPANDED THROUGH THE TWIN CITIES METRO… … HISTORIC WINTER STORM ONGOING…
…SNOWFALL RATES AROUND UP TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON…
.This is shaping up to be a historic storm. Please stay off the roads if possible, especially in southern Minnesota. Several rounds of very heavy snow will continue through this afternoon into this evening. Snowfall rates of around 1 to 2 inches per hour can be expected through the early evening hours in central Minnesota through west central Wisconsin. The snow will taper down Saturday night, but light snow will continue into Sunday. A Blizzard Warning remains in effect through late tonight for the southern third of Minnesota and far western Wisconsin. A Winter Storm Warning remains in effect to the north and east of the Blizzard Warning, including a portion of central Minnesota and the rest of west central Wisconsin. A Winter Weather Advisory remains in effect for a few counties in Minnesota that will receive less snow.
Total snow accumulations of 8 to 15 inches are expected by the time the storm ends Sunday from southwest Minnesota to east central Minnesota and northern Wisconsin. Totals will taper off to 4 to 8 inches across west central Minnesota. There will likely be a sharp gradient on the north side of the heavy snow band.
This is what an air traffic controller who works in the MSP airport tweeted:
Just had the Winnipeg Jets team holding in my airspace waiting to get into MSP asking how far drive from Duluth to Minneapolis is and how bad the roads are…. ain’t nobody getting in MSP #AprilSnowStorm
— Brendan Doyle (@HeyYoDooly) April 14, 2018
Paul Friesen of the Winnipeg Sun says the Jets are still waiting:
#NHLJets remain on the tarmac in Duluth, MN. Some two hours, so far.
— Paul Friesen (@friesensunmedia) April 14, 2018
The Wild were fortunate in that they left Winnipeg last night following game 2 and avoided the storm.
We will have to wait to see what happens with the Jets.
Update from the Jets:
The #NHLJets returned to Winnipeg from Duluth this afternoon due to the ongoing conditions in the Twin Cities. The plan now is to depart tomorrow morning for Minneapolis.
— Winnipeg Jets PR (@WpgJetsPR) April 14, 2018
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