A significant cold snap is heading into Central Minnesota.

St. Cloud State Meteorology professor Bob Weisman says temperatures will crash into the teens and the northwest winds will pick up to 15-30 MPH with higher gusts Wednesday afternoon and evening. This will cause some blowing snow in open areas.

The temperatures will also quickly drop to below 15 degrees. Overnight Wednesday to Thursday morning will dip to -16 with wind chill values as low as -35. On Thursday the sun returns, but we’ll only reach a high near 0. Wind chill values as low as -34 are expected throughout the day.

The blizzard warning continues in western Minnesota all day Thursday. The wind chill warning in the western half of Minnesota begins tonight and extends to 10 a.m. Thursday morning, including from Willmar and St. Cloud westward.