I-94 still partially closed in North Dakota as blizzard leaves behind massive drifts
North Dakota Highway Patrol
North Dakota is still dealing with the fallout from a weekend blizzard that caused the shutdown of freeways across the eastern half of the state.
While the stretch from Bismarck to Jamestown opened Monday morning, I-94 is still closed between Jamestown and Fargo as of noon, despite the best efforts from plowing teams to clear the interstate.
The blizzard that dropped a foot of snow has been exacerbated by wind that has caused huge drifts to form on the freeway, particularly under and around overpasses.
Interstate 29 was initially closed between South Dakota and Grand Forks on Monday morning, but it eventually opened at 11:15 a.m. as conditions improved.
Despite the pleas of authorities for drivers to stay off the roads, there were still instances of drivers who defied the interstate closures – picking up citations in the process.
There was also an incident in which pickup truck driver got stuck in a drift after going around closure barriers on Sunday night.
There are problems on local roads too. The City of West Fargo has canceled all garbage and recycling collection, shut down municipal buildings, and imposed a no-travel advisory on Monday.
The city says that the blizzard has left some roads in the city blocked and impassable, noting that plowing operations are slow due to the amount of snow involved.
