Calendar-defying weather taxed Twin Citians and other Minnesotans on this Tax Day as temperatures in the upper teens found their way into the record books early Tuesday.
As of 7 a.m., the 18-degree reading reported by the National Weather Service (NWS) tied a record for the date, set in 1935, at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. The last time a record low was tied or broken at the airport was on April 20, 2013, the weather service added.
To the northwest in St. Cloud, the mercury dipped to 16, beating the date's previous record of 17 set in 1943, the NWS said. Single-digit temperatures were reported all across north-central Minnesota, with Flag Island and Crane Lake dipping to a lonely 1 degree.
Now, let's talk snow, and potentially lots of it.
Snow of at least an inch is forecast for the northern half of the Twin Cities starting before dawn Wednesday and continuing into Thursday.
Depths are predicted to grow heading north and east, with up to 8 to 10 inches in and around Duluth, according to the weather service.
Twin Citians' shovels and snowblowers, however, should be kept tucked away. The weather service is calling for melt-friendly highs in the upper 30s and lower 40s through the rest of the workweek.
Peeking ahead to Easter Sunday, if one dares, a slight chance of rain is in the NWS forecast to go with a high of 55. Cartwheels not needed. That's still 4 degrees below average for that date.
