Snow falls on Albert Lea area on Sunday
Published 9:15 am Monday, October 27, 2008
It’s clear what people were talking about today at work. It’s snowed a lot on a blustery Sunday.
The white stuff started falling at about 10 minutes to 10 a.m. Flurries fell for a few minutes amid the strong winds that blew through the area. There was no accumulation at that time.
But near 11 a.m., more snow fell. It fell for about 40 minutes and had big flakes that were easy to see from any window. The wind tossed them around the air. At times the snow was driving and at others it was dancing as the winds altered directions. There was some accumulation but soon melted. The ground was too warm and the temperature was 36 degrees.
The snow again picked up in the afternoon and for a longer duration. It reached its peak strength at about 2 p.m. It had accumulated on the ground. With the temperatures on their way down for the day, some of the snow stayed overnight and was expected to melt today.
Freeborn County and areas to the west were in a high wind warning, which lasted through Sunday evening. The National Weather Service reported sustained winds of 35 to 40 mph with gusts up to 50 and 60 mph through Sunday morning and in the afternoon. The winds decreased somewhat in the evening to about 30 mph with 45 mph gusts.
Many children were thrilled about seeing snow but were reluctant to venture outdoors into it because of the bitter wind.
The temperature at the observing station at the Albert Lea Municipal Airport at 10 a.m. was 39 degrees, with a wind chill of 28 degrees.
The coldest the air got Sunday was 30 degrees at about 4:30 p.m. It actually warmed up to 36 degrees by 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday is slated to be sunny with a high of 48 degrees.