Bitter cold to stick around Thursday; many schools delayed, closed

Bitter cold weather arrived Wednesday afternoon and conditions won’t get much better Thursday.

According to KSTP Chief Meteorologist Dave Dahl, temperatures are expected to hit -5 by midnight. However, with wind chills factored in, it will feel like -30 at midnight and -35 at 7 a.m. Thursday.

Check weather conditions in your area here

KSTP Chief Meteorologist Dave Dahl said some light snow will move through the Twin Cities and is likely to wrap up by 6 p.m.

The cold weather is not expected to go away Thursday.

Temperatures Thursday will start off around -8 degrees and are expected to only climb slightly above zero, but the wind will make it feel much colder.

Blizzard conditions affect travel in northwestern Minnesota, Dakotas

Despite the cold forecast, Minneapolis and St. Paul school districts told KSTP they are planning to be open Thursday. Their thresholds are both -35 degrees windchill. Bloomington Public Schools also said it isn’t anticipating closing on Thursday but said it will keep monitoring weather conditions. All districts urged parents to make sure students are extra bundled up and prepared for the extreme cold.

Anoka-Hennepin School District told KSTP Wednesday afternoon it was planning to be open Thursday, but tweeted later in the evening that it had decided to close Thursday. Many other schools issued late starts.

You can track the latest school delays and closings here.