The National Weather Service says the impending frigid temperatures expected in Minnesota will be “life-threatening,” and “historic.”

The agency issued a Windchill Warning, effective from 9 a.m. Tuesday morning to 9 a.m. Thursday morning, noting that wind chills are expected to fall to 25 to 35 below zero Monday night into Tuesday morning, as gusty northwest winds reach speeds of up to 35 miles per hour.  From Tuesday through Thursday morning, wind chill values could fall as low as 55 below zero.

The dangerous cold rides in on the coattails of a winter storm that dumped 7 inches of snow in the Mankato region, canceling nearly all area schools and leaving parents to make alternative childcare arrangements.  A snow emergency has been declared in Mankato and in other surrounding communities.

The cold air mass is expected to be the coldest Minnesota has seen since 1996.  NWS says exposed skin in such weather could lead to frostbite in as little as five minutes.