Photo courtesy of Jarret Beebout High winds on Wednesday caused some damage to a sign outside Kibble Equipment in Marshall. Blowing snow cut down visibility on Wednesday, and led to no-travel advisories affecting several area highways.

MARSHALL — High winds tore across southwest Minnesota on Wednesday, leading to some hazardous weather conditions. To the north and east of Marshall, blizzard warnings were in place as blowing snow reduced visibility along roads.

“We’re transitioning to more of a normal February pattern,” with cooler temperatures and snow, said Tim Masters, at the National Weather Service office in Sioux Falls. “The warm and dry weather is coming to an end.”

The NWS said chances for more snow will return this afternoon and evening. While breezy conditions are expected, they’re only forecast to reach around 15 to 20 miles per hour, Masters said. In Marshall, snow accumulations of less than half an inch are forecast Thursday night, while temperatures drop into the 20s this weekend.

The colder and snowier weather is a change from last week’s unusually warm temperatures. According to NOAA online data, Marshall set a new temperature record on Feb. 14, as the daytime high reached 57 degrees. The observed high temperature on Feb. 15 was another record-breaker, at 62 degrees.

On Wednesday, gusts of wind above 50 miles per hour were reported in locations across southwest Minnesota, according to local storm reports to the NWS. A gust of 56 miles per hour was reported near Canby on Wednesday morning, and a gust of 58 miles per hour was reported near Redwood Falls.

Some area residents reported wind damage to buildings and outdoor equipment. In Marshall, the wind caused some damage to a sign outside Kibble Equipment, along north U.S. Highway 59. High winds also damaged the covering over piles of corn at the grain elevator in Ruthton.

Blowing snow cut down visibility on highways in parts of southwest and southern Minnesota on Wednesday. The Minnesota State Patrol said there were a total of seven crashes, 12 vehicles off the road and four jackknifed semi trucks reported in its Marshall district between 6 a.m. and 4 p.m. Wednesday.

At different times during the day Wednesday, travel was not advised on routes including Highway 23 between Marshall and Granite Falls, and Highway 19 between Marshall and Redwood Falls. By around 5 p.m., no-travel advisories were in place further east, impacting parts of Yellow Medicine, Redwood and Renville Counties, as well as the New Ulm and Mankato areas.