Winter storm could deliver a foot of January snow

A mid-January snowstorm could drop up to a foot of snow in the Mankato area Friday.

Forecasters have expanded a winter storm watch eastward, and it now includes Mankato and all of Blue Earth, Nicollet, and Waseca counties.  Brown, Martin, and Watonwan counties are under a winter storm WARNING, which also covers most of southwestern Minnesota.

The watch goes into effect at midnight Friday and ends at midnight on Saturday.

The National Weather Service Twin Cities says there is high confidence that counties under the warning will see 6″ or more of snowfall.

Information posted by NWS early Thursday indicates that Mankato is liking looking at 5 to 10 inches of snow, with a 70% chance of seeing more than 6 inches.

However, the most recent forecast from NWS shows that those amounts could be higher, with daytime snowfall totals of up to 8 inches, and nighttime accumulations of up to 3 inches.

Patchy, blowing snow and heavy snowfall are expected during this potential storm, according to NWS.