Update: At 6 p.m. Thursday, Interstate 29 will be closed at the Interstate 90 interchange to the North Dakota border. It’s expected to remain closed through the night and into Friday.

Dec. 22, 2022

Blizzard conditions are interrupting travel by road and air in the Sioux Falls area.

The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning until 6 p.m. Friday.

The Sioux Falls Regional Airport closed at 1 p.m. today and won’t reopen until 6:30 p.m. Friday. Several flights already had been delayed or canceled this morning.

Interstate 90, which closed Wednesday night between Chamberlain and Rapid City, will be shut down from Sioux Falls to the west at 5 p.m. today. It’s expected to remain closed through the night and into Friday, the South Dakota Department of Transportation said in a news release.

Low visibility and drifting snow are worsening, the state department said. Many stranded vehicles also are blocking lanes of traffic.

It also issued a public safety alert advising no travel across South Dakota.

Travelers are advised to check SD511.org or dial 511 for the latest road and weather conditions.

The National Weather Service in Sioux Falls said that with winds gusting as high as 45 mph, wind chills as low as 50 degrees below zero are expected across central, east central, south central and southeast South Dakota and into southwest Minnesota. Blowing snow will reduce visibility to less than 1 mile at times in open areas.

At 1 p.m., the temperature in Sioux Falls was 13 degrees below zero, and that’s expected to remain through the night along with winds gusting to 45 mph.

Friday’s forecast calls for a high of 6 degrees below zero with continuing high winds, creating wind chill values as low as 39 degrees below zero.

Conditions are expected to improve somewhat Saturday with a high of zero and winds gusting to 30 miles an hour.

Christmas Day’s high is expected to be 11 degrees.