Friday,  Dec. 06, 2013 • Vol. 16--No. 143 • 18 of 39

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10 degrees in Ironwood, 15 in Iron Mountain, 31 in Kalamazoo and 38 at Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
• A mix of snow and freezing rain was expected in places, making travel difficult, and gale warnings were in effect for Lake Superior and parts of northern Lake Michigan.
• MINNESOTA
• The storm dumped as much as 2 feet of snow in parts of Minnesota, forcing school closures and temporary power outages and delighting skiers who were hitting the slopes despite temperatures in the single digits Thursday.
• The Spirit Mountain ski area in Duluth, Minn. welcomed the heavy snowfall, which helped turn the slopes into a party. Attendees included students from the University of Minnesota Duluth and other colleges who were given Wednesday off.
• While college classes resumed Thursday, Duluth-area elementary and high schools remained closed. Temperatures were in the single digits above zero Thursday morning and were forecast to slowly fall all day on their way to subzero overnight lows for at least the next few days.
• MISSOURI
• Most of southern Missouri was under winter weather warnings, with up to 8 inches of snow possible by Friday evening.
• Even more problematic: Sleet and freezing rain accumulations of up to a quarter-inch were expected in areas south of Interstate 44 in addition to the snow, creating a strong potential for downed power lines and very slick driving conditions.
• "Certainly power outages are going to be a real threat," said Scott Truett, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in St. Louis. As for driving, snow on top of ice "is a very bad combination," Truett said.
• Adding to Missouri's woes was the frigid cold. Highs were mostly expected to reach only into the 20s or low 30s, a sharp decline from highs in the 60s in many places just 24 hours earlier. St. Louis reached 69 degrees on Wednesday; afternoon temperatures on Thursday were 40 degrees colder.
• MONTANA
• Temperatures plunged to minus 11 in Helena, where a frozen pipe burst and flooded part of the Montana State Capitol building Thursday morning.
• There was minor flooding in the cafeteria, media rooms and some bathrooms, although most of the building remained open for business and public meetings as workers dried the soaked areas.
• The cold snap Thursday set or matched record low temperatures in parts of Montana, including minus 26 in Great Falls. Denton also set a record at minus 23 Thursday morning and Havre's minus 27 reading matched a record that has stood since

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