Warm weather may set records in Twin Cities, southern Minnesota

Spring will be in the air over the next couple of days, as sun-soaked warmth serves up what might be the warmest Valentine’s Day in more than 90 years.

The record high temperature for Feb. 14 in the Twin Cities is 50 degrees set in 1882, and thermometers will make a run at that mark on Saturday, the National Weather Service said.

Friday could also make its way into the record books if the temperature in the Twin Cities reaches 51 degrees, the current record that has stood since 1890, according to the Minnesota State Climatology Office.

Rochester and Austin also are in line for new high temperature marks for Friday, according to the Weather Service in La Crosse, Wis.

Records or not, the burst of above-normal temperatures will give winter-weary Minnesotans a break from the cold, at least until midweek when cooler weather returns with the possibility of rain or snow.

“Enjoy the near-record warmth,” the Weather Service said of the weekend thaw. “Our snowpack will quickly melt over the next day or two.”

Record high temperatures could also be challenged on Saturday in St. Cloud, Rochester and Worthington in southwestern Minnesota, where 60 degrees is not out the question, the Weather Service said.

Maple Grove has called off Sunday’s Glow in the Snow event due to a lack of snow at Gleason Fields. Apple Valley has stopped flooding operations as ice conditions at city rinks have become “too soft.” Edina has closed its rinks, too.

In Minneapolis where ice rinks were to remain open through Presidents Day on Monday, officials are taking it day by day as ice conditions deteriorate under sunny skies.

“Remaining outdoor youth hockey and adult pond hockey games have been canceled,” the city’s Parks and Recreation Department said. “Broomball is on as scheduled through Saturday.”

Last year in the Twin Cities, the high on Valentine’s Day was 22 degrees and the low was 1 below zero with a 3-inch snowpack, according to the Climatology Office.

Sunny and mild conditions will continue through Tuesday when a shift in the atmosphere will bring a more “active” weather pattern, with several chances of precipitation for the last two weeks of February, the Weather Service said.

The path of the storm is still uncertain, the Weather Service said.