Minneapolis and St. Paul have declared snow emergencies to take effect Wednesday evening — the first of what will be days of extraordinary response in anticipation of an extraordinary storm system.
St. Paul will declare back-to-back emergencies, and Minneapolis might as well, officials said. To keep streets clear, both cities have opened up acres of free covered parking for anyone to stash their vehicles through the weekend.
Public schools will be closed for the rest of the week in both cities, and garbage, library and rec center services will be disrupted. Officials said they were in contact with Xcel Energy and drawing up plans should the power go out.
The announcements came Tuesday afternoon in a superlative-filled news conference in which Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter led a host of local leaders imploring residents to prepare immediately for what could be days of hunkering down.
"We are bracing for what is likely to be one of the largest snowstorms in Minnesota history," Carter said. "We expect it to have major impacts across the Twin Cities on every aspect of life, every aspect of city operations, for the rest of this week."
Here are some details.
Minneapolis emergency
Minneapolis will declare a snow emergency Wednesday morning that will take effect starting 9 p.m. Wednesday, Public Works Director Margaret Anderson Kelliher said.
