"This is nutso," Karley Gosch , of Mandan , said as she braved the strong winds and pelting snow while walking across Main Street .
No travel was advised in the southwest and south central regions including Burleigh and Morton counties, and authorities closed Interstate 94 from the Montana border to Jamestown late in the afternoon, along with U.S. Highway 52 from Jamestown to Carrington , Interstate 29 from Fargo to the Canada border, U.S. Highway 2 from Devils Lake to Grand Forks , and state Highway 20 from Fort Totten to Devils Lake .
"When (road crews) can't keep up and Mother Nature overwhelms them, we have to shut (roads) down," Highway Patrol Sgt. Wade Kadrmas said.
Interstate travel between Bismarck and Mandan was still allowed. The state Department of Transportation urged motorists in other areas of the state to be cautious due to the slippery roads, heavy snow, strong winds and reduced visibility.
Bismarck declared a snow emergency, prohibiting parking on all designated snow emergency routes. The city asked residents to avoid parking on other streets to aid in plowing.
Vehicles stuck in the street were a common sight around town. Traffic in the northern part of the city became snarled around midday when a semitrailer became stuck near the turnoff from State Street onto North 12th Street .
In many places on the edge of the metro area it was difficult to define clearly where the road was from the ditches surrounding it, and visibility was reduced to about 50 feet.
Bismarck police by about 4 p.m. had responded to seven crashes, none of which caused any injuries and the last of which had occurred before noon. Officers went to 22 traffic assists, according to Lt. Luke Gardiner .
Outside of the metro area, the Highway Patrol assisted drivers who had slid into ditches and dealt with some minor injury accidents, according to Kadrmas.
"Hopefully people will just hunker down and be patient," the sergeant said. "That's the key."
A Manvel man suffered "moderate" injuries when he rear-ended a snowplow near Grand Forks in northeastern North Dakota , according to the Patrol.
The Burleigh County Sheriff's Department saw less traffic than normal. That was aided by business closures and people stocking up on groceries ahead of the storm.
"A lot of people are actually staying home," Maj. Jim Hulm said. "So far, so good. We'll see what tomorrow brings."
Conditions were expected to continue to deteriorate during what is likely to be a three-day storm. Statewide road conditions are at https://travel.dot.nd.gov/. More Bismarck - Mandan snow removal information is at https://bismarcknd.gov/249/Snow-Removal and https://www.cityofmandan.com/snowremoval.
The state activated its Emergency Operations Center and was coordinating with local emergency managers across North Dakota to ensure that resources including search-and-rescue were available if needed, according to the governor's office.
The blizzard could bring record snowfall to Bismarck , which could get 2 feet of snow, and could rank as "one of the worst storms in recent history," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Adam Douty said.
The National Weather Service reported 4 inches of snow at the Bismarck Airport around midday.
The snow in Bismarck on Tuesday made an impression on 7-year-old Kaitlyn Hanson , who built a snow fort while her father, Jared Hanson , cleared the sidewalk in front of their home. Kaitlyn said she had been in snowstorms before, "But this is a real, real, real, real blizzard."
Others weren't so fascinated.
"This is ridiculous," Austin Stroh said of the accumulating snow as he cleared a sidewalk near downtown Bismarck .
All but the southeastern corner of North Dakota was under a blizzard warning, with as much as 30 inches of snow possible in some areas and winds expected to gust as strong as 50-60 mph. AccuWeather said snowdrifts could be 20 feet high.
The storm system moved in from the Pacific Northwest , picking up steam as it rolled over the Rockies and onto the Plains, where it clashed with warm, humid air from the Gulf of Mexico — the storm's moisture source, AccuWeather said. Meanwhile, a southward dip in the jet stream allowed cold Canadian air to move south, setting the stage for what it said could be the "storm of the century" lasting through Thursday.
Snowfall rates could be as high as an inch to 1 1/2 inches per hour, according to Matthew Johnson , a meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Bismarck .
"It doesn't happen all that often," he said. "This is comparable probably to the blizzard of '97 in western and central North Dakota ."
In Bismarck - Mandan , "We're going to see the majority of the heavy snowfall today," Johnson said Tuesday morning. "But the winds will be increasing tomorrow, and visibility could be more reduced" Wednesday.
Numerous flights were canceled at the Bismarck Airport on Tuesday.
Public and private schools in Bismarck - Mandan called off in-person classes through Wednesday. Public schools will make a decision on Thursday later; the Catholic school systems in both cities do not have classes scheduled on Thursday due to Easter break.
Bismarck State College and United Tribes Technical College canceled classes Tuesday through Thursday, and the University of Mary won't hold in-person classes during the three-day storm stretch. Dickinson State University moved to virtual instruction Tuesday through Thursday. Williston State College planned to close for the week at midday Tuesday.
Bis-Man Transit parked CAT and paratransit buses and planned to resume operations only "when it is safe." Bismarck pulled garbage trucks off the streets midmorning and canceled collection routes for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Recycling collection in the capital city also was called off until next week.
Crews attempted garbage and recycling pickup in Mandan on Tuesday. The city canceled collections for the rest of the week.
Both cities postponed their annual Spring Clean-up Week, which had been scheduled next week, due to the storm. The week when residents can place bulky items on the boulevard for special pickup is now set for May 2-5 in both cities.
The storm prompted numerous public and private closings around the metro area, including Burleigh County offices, Bismarck parks facilities and programs, Kirkwood Mall , and the Capitol and other state facilities in the Bismarck area.
"We're grateful to those who continue to provide essential state services in challenging conditions for the safety and well-being of our citizens, including the North Dakota Department of Transportation and Highway Patrol members working out in these harsh conditions," Gov. Doug Burgum said in a statement.
Meetings of the Legislature's interim Higher Education Committee and Government Finance Committees set for Tuesday and Wednesday in Bismarck were canceled.
CHI St. Alexius Health closed outpatient facilities in Bismarck , Mandan , Garrison , Turtle Lake , Washburn and Minot . Inpatient services at the Bismarck hospital continued as normal. Sanford Health closed clinics in Bismarck , Mandan , Dickinson and Minot . Sanford planned to keep those clinics and the clinic in Watford City closed through Wednesday.
The state Department of Human Services closed locations in Bismarck , Dickinson, Williston , Minot , Devils Lake , Jamestown , Rolla and Valley City that provide direct client services. People experiencing a behavioral health crisis should call 211. Job Service North Dakota closed offices in Bismarck , Dickinson, Minot , Williston and Devils Lake .
The storm also threatened to disrupt spring calving and cause power outages.
"The snow will be stickier than usual," AccuWeather Meteorologist Matt Benz said, adding that it will "stick to everything, adding extra weight to power poles and trees."
PowerOutage.us reported about 100 people without electricity Tuesday morning, most of them Montana-Dakota Utilities customers in Sioux County , though by midday the power was back on. Only a handful of people statewide were without power late in the afternoon.
Bismarck -based MDU, which serves about 143,000 electricity customers and 275,000 natural gas customers in the Northern Plains, including in Bismarck - Mandan , said it was prepared for the storm.
"Crews are ready to respond; snowmobiles and other equipment with tracks are ready; and we have contract crews on standby in different areas of our regions," spokesman Mark Hanson said.
"We don't anticipate large-scale outages, but how the storm plays out will determine impact," he said. "In areas where it's supposed to rain before turning to snow there could be ice buildup on power lines, which can be problematic. Fortunately trees are still bare, so we don't anticipate widespread problems with broken branches/trees. Strong wind gusts can still create an issue with trees, but nothing like trees in full foliage getting dumped on with wet, heavy snow."
Responding to outages could be difficult if roads are closed or impassable, Hanson said.
MDU is urging residents to keep natural gas meters and furnace vent areas clear of snow, and asking anyone doing snow removal to be mindful of infrastructure such as electric transformers that might be buried. The Bismarck Fire Department asked for residents' help in keeping the 4,500 fire hydrants in the city clear of snow.
The U.S. Postal Service asked people to clear snow and ice from walk areas and mailboxes, to aid mail carriers.
"By simply clearing the way, customers help reduce the risk," Minnesota-North Dakota District Manager Anthony Williams said.
Letter carriers "will make every effort to deliver their routes during the storm, as long as they feel it is safe to do so," district spokesman Desai Abdul-Razzaaq said. However, he added that "delivery may be impacted due to road closures, impassable roads and inaccessibility of mailboxes."
"In the event of road closures by local, state or federal officials, the USPS will suspend services in those areas," he said.
At least one Postal Service delivery van got stuck in Bismarck , along North 12th Street , and was being pulled out by a passerby in a pickup.
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