With snow forecasted, ND Highway Patrol urges caution traveling this holiday weekend

FARGO — With more snow still on the way, the travel conditions are not likely to improve for your Easter weekend. An early spring storm is causing plenty of headaches for travelers heading out for the holidays. Predicted heavy snow, combined with strong winds could make travel difficult, if not nearly impossible, in some areas.

“They’re talking anywhere from, like, five to maybe up to 12, 13 inches of snow, kind of depending on where you’re living, with some of that starting already out West and it’s working its way from the South and from the West towards our area here in Fargo right now,” said North Dakota Highway Patrol Captain Bryan Niewind.

Niewind urges travelers to be prepared for wintry conditions.

“What I expect is we’re going to have some slush buildup on the roadways, and then when the sun goes down, they could potentially turn into some compacted snow and compacted ice,” Niewind said.

Or to consider postponing your trip altogether.

“You just need to be ready for those changing road conditions. Those changing visibility conditions as you’re driving,” Niewind said. “We tell people is if you don’t need to travel tonight, or even into, like, tomorrow morning, maybe just stay home. Tomorrow evening, Sunday is supposed to be some better weather. The snow is supposed to move out of the area and that gives DOT some time to get the stuff off the roadways.”

And with the high totals and heavy, wet snow expected, the cleanup isn’t going to be a breeze.

“If you’re out there shoveling, you’re going to know that this stuff is really, really hard to move. So it’s going to be difficult to keep it off the roads. It’s going to continue building up, even as the snowplow goes by, it’s going to continue building up,” Niewind said.