By Associated Press and Albert Lea Tribune

Most of Minnesota was under a winter storm warning Saturday as the first major winter storm of the season bore down on the state.

The snow began falling Saturday morning across a large part of western Minnesota and quickly spread across the rest of the state. It was forecast to become heavy as the day went by, with accumulations of 6 inches in many areas to as much as 16 inches in some parts of east-central and northeastern Minnesota, the National Weather Service said.

In Albert Lea, the snow began falling at about 7:30 a.m. This continued with a mixture of sleet before noon and then turned to periods of freezing rain and sleet with a high near 27 degrees.

KIMT Meteorologist Adam Frederick said as of 2 p.m. Saturday, Albert Lea had received a range of between 3 to 4 inches of a snow and sleet combination, with another possible 1 or 2 inches more to come in the evening.

The snow was mixing with sleet along the Interstate 90 corridor across southern Minnesota. Visibilities were down to a quarter mile in some areas due to winds gusting in the 20 mph range.

This was also true in Albert Lea where visibility went down to a quarter mile close to 9 a.m. Saturday with winds gusting in the 30 mph range, according to the National Weather Service.

State Patrol Lt. Tom Schmitz said the best driving plan in this kind of storm is none.

&8220;Obviously, we&8217;d like to see them stay home, but if you do have to have to travel, don&8217;t put your schedule before safety,&8221; he said.

Schmitz advised drivers to take common-sense steps such as reducing speed, using headlights and seat belts and leaving plenty of room between vehicles.

&8220;Just because it says 70 (mph) out there, if the weather conditions aren&8217;t favorable, don&8217;t drive that fast,&8221; he said.

The Federal Aviation Administration reported no major weather delays at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport by midday Saturday, though the storm had prompted the closure of the Des Moines International Airport for several hours after a United Airlines plane slid off a taxiway. The FAA said delays for incoming traffic to Chicago&8217;s O&8217;Hare International Airport were averaging over an hour.

Northwest Airlines said it would allow passengers planning to fly this weekend to rebook for a different date without penalty. The change applied to passengers flying to, from, or through Minnesota, Wisconsin, or Michigan on Saturday or today. Passengers can rebook their travel for Nov. 30 to Dec. 4.

Locally, forecasters at the National Weather Service have called for a 30 percent chance of snow today with a high of 24. It will be mostly cloudy, with a northwest wind between 20 and 23 mph, with gusts as high as 32 mph.

&8220;It will be our opportunity to clean things up a little bit,&8221; Frederick said. &8220;We are going to have some windy conditions. Wind can be blowing stuff around, but it&8217;s not going to be falling from the sky.&8221;

A 30 percent chance of snow is also forecasted for Tuesday.