The City of Lakes became the City of Ice on Monday.
A thin coating has made walking and driving treacherous, turning simple walks into balancing acts, snarling commutes and keeping emergency rooms busy.
More dangerous and wintry weather arrived Tuesday for the Twin Cities, on the heels of last week's polar vortex that shut down much of the region.
The Twin Cities is expected to get 3-5 inches of snow, tapering off into the evening with temperatures getting no higher than the teens and possibly dipping back below zero.
Then another round of snow is forecast to arrive late Wednesday into Thursday and is expected to drop 3-6 inches throughout the extended Twin Cities, according to meteorologist Tyler Hasenstein with the National Weather Service in Chanhassen.
"At least out through next week, we're going to have typical February weather," he said, adding that models predict a colder-than-average month.
The snow would add to roads already coated in a thin but sturdy sheath of ice that challenges rock salt and ice-melting pellets as well as driving skills. Statewide, the Minnesota State Patrol reported more than 250 crashes throughout the day.
Twin Cities hospitals said scores arrived in emergency departments Monday for treatment of sprains and assorted injuries due to slips on the ice. A spokeswoman said that their numbers represented a "huge uptick" over a normal day.