Crews work to keep roads open in west central Minnesota

Limited visibility in the western part of the state is causing problems for motorists today, but state roads are being cleared and kept open.

Rumors that some state highways are being closed are false, said Jeff Butson, operations superintendent at the Minnesota Department of Transportation's District 8 office in Willmar.

Butson said he won't consider closing roads unless snow plows are pulled from the roads, and so far that's not happening.

MnDOT will likely have crews on the road until 8 p.m. tonight, and they'll resume clearing roads at 3 a.m. on Tuesday.

Butson said visibility is near zero in some parts of the district, including Madison and Canby. Elsewhere visibility can range from an eighth of a mile to a quarter of a mile. He said "snow clouds" that fly up when plows clear snow from road shoulders can cause dangerous visibility issues for on-coming traffic.

The Kandiyohi County Highway Department is also working to keep county roads cleared, said Public Works Director Gary Danielson.