Winter Weather — Dakota, Minnesota

2024-12-14 · Dakota, Minnesota

Event narrative

A period of freezing drizzle and freezing rain led to a thin layer of ice or glaze

over much of the Twin Cities metro area. There were numerous car accidents due to the icy conditions. One fatality occurred (indirectly) from icy road conditions in Inver Grove Heights, MN.

Wider weather episode

A closed low brought freezing drizzle, rain, fog, sleet, and snow across central and southern Minnesota. Precipitation amounts were low, but the impacts were still notable with widespread traffic and property damages.

The Minnesota State Patrol stated that on Saturday afternoon on December 14th, there were seven injury crashes, 109 property damage crashes, 23 vehicles off the road, two spinouts, and a jackknifed semi. One indirect fatality occurred in Inver Grove Heights (Dakota County) associated with the icy road conditions.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1221869. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.