WORTHINGTON -- After more than two days of snowing and blowing, cancellations and postponements, the weekend brought sunny skies and a sense of normalcy to the region's residents.
Retail outlets reopened for business, and those who had weathered the storm with their doors open saw a fresh influx of customers, eager to escape the confines of their homes. Traffic returned to most of the area's highways, although caution was still urged for travelers.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation termed driving conditions as "difficult" throughout the weekend, continuing until Sunday morning. "No travel is advised," stated MnDOT's online advisory. "All roads are ice and snow compacted. Snow cloud danger is likely due to strong winds." By Sunday afternoon, conditions in Nobles and Rock counties had been upgraded to good, although difficult conditions persisted in Cottonwood and Jackson counties.
An accident at about 2:30 p.m. Saturday on Interstate 90 at mile marker 38 near Worthington temporarily closed down the major highway once again. Shannon Carlson, 29, of Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., was driving a semitrailer rig, lost control and struck a 1999 Jeep, driven by Daniel Kuany, 30, of Sioux Falls, S.D., that was stuck in the median. The semi came to rest in the north ditch with the trailer blocking both lanes of traffic. A third vehicle, a 2002 freightliner semitrailer rig driven by Stephen Dupont, 40 of Raleigh, N.C., was westbound, came upon the accident and did a 180-degree spin and also slid into the north ditch. No apparent injuries were reported.
The Minnesota State Patrol investigated at least two other accidents on Interstate 90 on Saturday, including one at 7 a.m. near Lakefield and another at 1:50 p.m. near Luverne. Details of those accidents are listed in the data section on Page A2.
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In Iowa, the DOT cautioned that many roads remained closed in the western part of the state. Iowa's interstates finally opened to traffic at about noon Saturday. The Lyon County, Iowa, Sheriff's Department lifted the "no travel" advisory at 1 p.m. Saturday. In South Dakota, the last section of Interstate 90 opened to traffic at 1:45 p.m. Saturday.
Despite the best efforts of area snowplow crews, the roads around Worthington remained covered with ice and snow on Saturday afternoon as drifting and shifting snow filled areas back in just as soon as the plows had gone by.
Although much of the labor involved in clearing away the snow in residential areas had been tackled on Friday, there was still cleanup left to be done over the course of the weekend. Snowblowers were started anew for a return trip to areas reclogged with snow by drifting and passing plows. Removal crews continued on their rounds, digging out customers they didn't get to on Friday.
Businesses around Worthington reported a steady trickle of customers as people tentatively started to get out and about on Saturday. A few people milled around the Northland Mall, and a few cars were parked along 10th Street in downtown Worthington, despite the presence of huge piles of snow that made it difficult to see and navigate through the area. At The Stag in downtown Worthington, business was reported as being somewhat steady since about 11 a.m., mostly local students searching out prom attire.
The most upbeat attitude about the big influx of snow could be found at Worthington Sports Center, where a couple of new snowmobiles had gone out the door on Saturday morning.
"I'd say it's the best snow in 10 years," said employee BJ Klinkenborg, reporting that the Sports Center's customers were extremely excited about the conditions, despite the lateness in the season. "Everybody just says they wished they could have seen it back in November of December. It sure puts a lot of people in a better mood because they can go out and play in it."
Klinkenborg had himself found an opportunity for play in the middle of the storm, using a Yamaha Rhino, a street-legal four-wheeled vehicle that looks like a golf cart on steroids, and he hoped to get out on a snowmobile later in the day, once the Sports Center closed.
"My wife said, 'Why are you so happy lately?' and I said, 'Look at the snow!'" he recounted.
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Another snowmobile enthusiast, Corey Boehnke of Bigelow, was sighted Saturday afternoon along Nobles County 57 south of Worthington. The day before, he'd had to ride his sled to work at the nearby VanderKooi dairy and was glad to have the opportunity to utilize it for recreational riding on Saturday.
"This is easily the best snow in many years," he said as he prepared to make another run through the drifts in the ditches.
