Winter alerts extended in Minnesota with continued snowstorm impacts

WCCO's NEXT Weather Alert is officially over as of 9 p.m., but the snowstorm isn't quite done with Minnesota yet.  

Winter weather advisories have been extended until 12 a.m. Thursday across central Minnesota, including the Twin Cities, and northern Minnesota. 

The snowstorm wreaked havoc on the roads, leading to hundreds of crashes, with 25 people being hurt. No incidents have yet been confirmed to be deadly. 

The Twin Cities area had measurable snow, but northern Minnesota got hit the hardest, especially the North Shore. Some areas saw more than 30 inches of snow. 

The snow will wind down Wednesday night, but gusty winds will linger.

Thursday night into Friday, a snowstorm is expected to trend to the south and east of Minnesota. Though we'll miss out on the snow, it'll still be cold.

Late in the week, temperatures will trend colder, returning to seasonal levels ahead of a quiet weekend.

"That was thundersnow!"

On Tuesday night, the anchors on Duluth's CBS News affiliate Northern News Now caught the rare phenomenon of thundersnow not once, but three times.

"Was that lightning? That was thundersnow! We just saw, we just saw lightning! That's awesome, let's go!" said chief meteorologist Adam Lorch. "We caught that live on camera, that's super cool!"

The storm closed Highway 61 Wednesday morning from Duluth all the way to Canada so crews could clear more than a foot of snow. 

"We are seeing a large number of vehicles off the road, so for the most part, that seems to be people driving too fast for the conditions," said Lt. Mike Lee with the Minnesota State Patrol.

Two Harbors dealt with visibility as low as a quarter of a mile early Wednesday. But some people had to go to work anyway, like snow plow driver Emily Ford.

"I've lived in Minnesota my whole life and I have not driven through a blizzard like that," Ford said. "I'll be moving snow all day, but it doesn't really matter. I'll be happy to be on a sled."