Today in History: Nov. 10, 1977 - Valley residents dig out of storm

By Staff reports Today at 12:01 AM Listen Comments Share Share this article News Reporting News Reporting Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Trust Project What is this? Today in History revisits the Thursday, Nov. 10, 1977, edition of the Grand Forks Herald and highlights a story of "an autumn blizzard" that swept through northwestern Minnesota and eastern North Dakota. Highways were blocked, a freight train turned into a passenger train, people were stranded, schools were closed and, unfortunately, two deaths were associated with the storm. The National Weather Service said it was the worst on record for the time of year. Freight train became passenger train for a while: Valley residents dig out of storm By Darrel Koehler Herald Staff Writer ADVERTISEMENT A Burlington Northern freight train hauling grain from Grand Forks to Superior, Wis., became a passenger train for three miles Wednesday night. Engineer Leo Fettig, Grand Forks, said he was stopped in Erskine awaiting track clearance when he heard a call for help on a CB. He backed the train about three miles where snowmobilers helped transfer 21 motorists from their cars onto the train. The train advanced to Erskine where the motorists were given shelter overnight. Meanwhile, following two days of rain, snow and high winds, residents in northwestern Minnesota and eastern North Dakota began digging out early Thursday. Most of the schools in the northern Red River Valley were opened, however, buses in some cases were running late. There were numerous school closings in the Fargo-Moorhead area and in west central Minnesota. Plows were out early Thursday, and highways were being opened in the worst hit area, southeastern North Dakota and in the Detroit Lakes and Fergus Falls, Minn., areas. Compacted snow was making for hazardous highway travel early Thursday, according to a spokesman for the Minnesota Highway Department in Crookston. ADVERTISEMENT Several highways were blocked because of stalled vehicles. Trucks were blocking Highway 2 at Mentor, Minn., as well as Minnesota Highways 9 and 102 near Crookston. All area roads were expected to be opened before noon. Interstate 94 was blocked in the Fergus Falls, Minn., area and U.S. Highway 10 near Detroit Lakes. A spokesman for the North Dakota Highway Department said Interstate 29 was open to Fargo. However, portions were only single lane and driving was difficult. Interstate 94 was open between Fargo and Jamestown, N.D., with some portions only being single lane. Interstate 29 was blocked south of Fargo, but plows began clearing it at the junction with Highway 46. Officials said two deaths were associated with what they termed an "autumn blizzard." Mike Muzzy, 23, Thief River Falls, Minn., was crushed by snow-removal equipment Wednesday. The accident occurred about 11:30 a.m. at the Get-a-WAY, a retail sales store for outdoor recreational vehicles. Muzzy was operating a front-end loader when the bucket dropped, pinning him between the bucket and frame. He was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Muzzy, Thief River Falls. ADVERTISEMENT A motorist, Sandra Kerzman, 23, of Ward Springs, Minn., was killed Wednesday morning on Minnesota 28 east of Sauk Centre when she was struck by a car while trying to signal for help. Her car had slid off the road in slush. The body of an unidentified elderly man was found in the snow in the Fergus Falls area. Otter Tail County authorities said, however, the man apparently died of natural causes not related to the storm. The National Weather Service said the storm was the worst on record for this time of year. In fact, weather conditions were still poor in eastern Minnesota as the storm slowly churned its way out of the tri-state area and into Ontario. The Grand Forks area missed the brunt of the storm. Residents west of Devils Lake and north of Minto, N.D., report no snow on the ground. The Fargo area was hard hit by the storm, though, with drifts up to six feet reported. It will take much of the day before things return to normal there. During the height of the storm Wednesday, Hector Airport at Fargo closed and passengers were bused to Grand Forks to make connections. The Grand Forks International Airport never closed although conditions were border-line several times. Greyhound bus service was halted in Minnesota Wednesday and the morning bus from Fargo to Winnipeg was canceled. The morning run from Winnipeg to Fargo left Grand Forks despite the storm. No evening bus service was offered between the two points. ADVERTISEMENT Due to the storm, the Amtrak Empire Builder passenger train took on a larger than normal number of passengers to Fargo and the Twin Cities. In fact, the train was the only mode of transportation for awhile. Most of the storm’s punch — with winds gusting to 65 miles per hour — was absorbed Wednesday by western Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa and the Dakotas. Snowfall varied through the area. Depths of over six inches was reported at Red Lake Falls, Fosston and Bemidji, Minn., while Grand Forks only had about three inches. Fargo had seven inches. Thorhult, Minn., north of Red Lake, had 14 inches while Oklee, Minn., had nine. Kindred, N.D., had 12 inches with Fergus Falls reporting eight. Over 10 inches fell in the Detroit Lakes area. A busload of senior citizens from the Crookston area was stranded near Moorhead Wednesday. The group was aboard a chartered bus for Nashville, Tenn. Over 50 cars were stuck in deep snow in the Fergus Falls area. Two trucks, loaded with turkeys, were also stalled in that area with many of the birds being frozen. Large areas are still without electricity following the storm. The worst hit systems include Red River Electric Cooperative, based at Halstad, Minn., and Cass County Electric Cooperative, headquartered at Kindred, N.D. At Red River, over half of the system, stretching from East Grand Forks to Wolverton, Minn., was without power for a time. ADVERTISEMENT Nodak Rural Electric, based in Grand Forks said had only minor outages, caused by icy lines. A spokesman said most of the problems were in the area south of Highway 2. Nodak crews are assisting the other two cooperatives. It could be another day before power is completely restored. BEING ADVERTISED Comments Share Share this article News Reporting News Reporting Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Trust Project What is this? Tags Tags FROM THE ARCHIVES TODAY IN HISTORY By Staff reports Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under a byline of "staff." Often, the "staff" byline is used when rewriting basic news briefs that originate from official sources, such as a city press release about a road closure, and which require little or no reporting. At times, this byline is used when a news story includes numerous authors or when the story is formed by aggregating previously reported news from various sources. If outside sources are used, it is noted within the story. Listen to this article Conversation ADVERTISEMENT What To Read Next Community Today in History: Nov. 9, 2001 - Class A state girls baskeball tourney shows off 'new world' 1d ago · By Staff reports Lifestyle The science of monitoring our climate with guest Daryl Ritchison 1d ago · By Don Kinzler Community Today in History: Nov. 8, 1956 - City gasoline prices down 2d ago · By Staff reports ADVERTISEMENT Get Local Must Reads Prep Monday's local scoreboard for Nov. 9 2h ago · By Tom Miller Local Northern Plains Nitrogen hopes for construction on fertilizer plant in 2027 4h ago · By Jordan Rusche College UND football looking forward to a return to health during bye 9h ago · By Tom Miller College UND freshman Jayden Sonnenberg shows promise in victory over Minot State 9h ago