LANSING — The bitterly cold air that’s enveloped mid-Michigan for days was expected to start easing off today, but it probably won’t feel any warmer to the wind-chill weary − at least, not until Thursday.
After two days of highs in the single digits, temperatures were expected to reach the mid-teens by this afternoon, forecasters said. Problem is, the winds that drove wind-chill values down to around minus-15 on Tuesday were expected to blow even harder today, making it feel around minus-20 in the morning, said Walt Felver, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Grand Rapids.
“One of my classes was cancelled today because of the cold, I wish the others were as well,” Zoe Kerr, a Michigan State University junior said as she walks near the main library on campus Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025.
Even so, the lake-effect snow that helped turn Lansing-area freeways into ice skating rinks on Tuesday was expected to peter out away from the lakeshore, Felver said. And by Saturday, it should be a balmy 30 degrees in Lansing, he said.
“It’s still January,” he said. “Highs of around 30 are not out of the normal.”
Brutally cold temperatures and blowing snow caused treacherous driving conditions on Tuesday, leading to scores of crashes and closing schools across the region. By Tuesday afternoon, school districts had already called off classes for Wednesday.
“It’s going to be colder tomorrow morning than it was this morning,” Williamston Community Schools Superintendent Adam Spina said Tuesday.
A woman braves the frigid temperatures, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, as she walks down East Grand River Avenue in East Lansing.
Lansing Community College also canceled classes for the second straight day today.
Flash freezing on the roads led to dangerous driving conditions on Tuesday, and it was too cold for road salt to work very well. Across the region, police responded to dozens of crashes, and a multi-vehicle pileup caused police to shut down westbound Interstate 96 in the Webberville area for a time. No serious injuries were reported in those crashes.
The detailed forecast called for a gradual warm-up over the rest of this week, with highs in the mid-20s on Thursday, low 20s on Friday and up around 30 degrees on Saturday. There was a slight chance of snow for tonight and Thursday, but most of the snow in mid-Michigan has already fallen, Felver said.
A crew cleans up a sidewalk and driveway in East Lansing, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025.
“The winds will turn around to the south, so that should shut the lake-effect off (in mid-Michigan),” he said.
Anyone pondering a quick trip south to escape the cold might want to reconsider, or they should plan to bring their snow shovels with them, Felver said. Cold-weather advisories were in effect as far south as Sarasota, Fla., and there were blizzard warnings for parts of the U.S. along the Gulf of Mexico, he said.
As they go west from New Orleans, vacationers will find miles and miles of pristine beach, he said.
“Feel free to go barefoot and make all the angels in the snow you want,” he quipped.
Sarah Atwood contributed to this report. Contact Ken Palmer at [email protected]. Follow him on X @KBPalm_lsj.
Traffic moves slowly along northbound US-127, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025.
People brave the cold on the campus of Michigan State University, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025.
A woman braves the frigid temperatures, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, as she walks down East Grand River Avenue in East Lansing.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Schools close as Lansing to see 1 more day of frigid weather
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