STURGIS, S.D. – A potent winter storm continues to affect South Dakota Tuesday afternoon. All eyes have been on this storm since we first started talking about it last week.
In fact, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem says they’ve tried to stay on top of it as best they can.
NOEM STORM 1
She says it’s not the time for anyone to let their guard down.
NOEM STORM 2
Even The Weather Channel made their way into South Dakota to report on the storm. Weather Channel Meteorologist Mike Seidel was reporting live from Main Street Sturgis Tuesday.
The storm shut down schools across the area, as well as roads. The Department of Public Safety shut down I-90 from the Wyoming line to Rapid City at 2:00 this (Tuesday) afternoon. That followed an earlier closure of the highway from Rapid City to Mitchell.
Also closed today were courts, city offices and state government offices. Noem talked about making that decision the day before the storm hit.
NOEM STORM 3
Blizzard warnings are in effect for most of western South Dakota for another 36 hours. The National Weather Service says expect the heaviest snow to fall tonight and into tomorrow morning.
That means, according to Department of Public Safety Secretary Craig Price, people will need to be patient.
Craigprice3
The South Dakota Highway Patrol has been responding to a number of accidents statewide today – including a pickup truck pulling a trailer that slid off the road trying to go around a road closed barrier on I-90. The patrol says doing that can get you a ticket.
Their advice to residents tonight – stay home, stay safe until this storm passes.
And when it does, we can expect some bitterly cold air to descend upon the region. Forecasters say high temperatures may not get out of the single digits heading into next week.
