Minneapolis Braces for Bone-Chilling Weekend with Subzero Wind Chills, Warns National Weather Service

Minneapolis residents are buckling down for a cold snap, as forecasters warn of a slight chance of snow today, with a chilly high near 7 degrees and wind chill factors making it feel as low as -13, according to the National Weather Service. The frigid conditions are expected to persist into the night, with temperatures diving to around -5 and wind chills plummeting to -15.

The weekend doesn't offer much reprieve with sunny skies on Saturday but high temperatures struggling to reach 9 degrees wind chill values could feel as low as -16 throughout Saturday night. Partly cloudy skies bring a low of around -1 and wind chill values slipping to -17, so while the sun may provide a glimmer of hope, the sting of the cold will remind folks that winter's grip remains firm.

Sunday promises to be slightly warmer with a partly sunny forecast and a high near 20, but the warmth comes with a breeze—south winds blowing 15 to 20 mph and gusting up to 35 mph, as indicated by the National Weather Service. The breezes continue into Sunday night, keeping temperatures around 16 degrees.

Looking ahead, the start of the workweek will see mostly cloudy skies Monday with slightly more comfortable highs near 31 before a 20 percent chance of snow after midnight, while Tuesday brings a mix of snow and rain with a high hovering at 34 degrees, but don't let the higher digits fool you, it'll still feel plenty cold with east winds at 5 to 10 mph making sure of that.

The Hazardous Weather Outlook issued by the National Weather Service comes with a stark warning for the central and southern regions of Minnesota, as well as west central Wisconsin, where "Wind chills between 15 to 25 below zero are likely tonight into Saturday morning." Residents are advised to prepare for hazardous conditions that include potentially dangerous wind chills continuing Saturday night into Sunday morning and blustery wind gusts of up to 35 mph on Sunday.