This will likely not be a good weekend to be out on the roads. The South Dakota Department of Transportation is already anticipating interstate closures.

Action News Reporter Kent Erdahl explains how the decision is made.

Even when a storm is fast approaching, closing an entire interstate is a lot more complicated than just swinging a gate. The first step in the process takes place at the National Weather Service. When a big blizzard is approaching, forecasters in Sioux Falls or in other offices across the state, put together storm reports twice a day and pass the information on to the state.

Looking ahead to this weekend, lead forecaster Kyle Weisser said the Weather Service notified the state of two major concerns when it comes to the interstates.

"Not only will visibilities be low, but if you get caught out in a storm like this, with wind chills of 20 to 40 below zero, frost bite can set in within minutes," Wisser said.

That's nearly a carbon copy of the advanced report the National Weather Service gave last week. The state acted on it by closing parts of interstates 90 and 29 just before the worst conditions hit.

The goal was to avoid a situation similar to the November blizzard in western South Dakota, which exposed the issue of timing. The storm came quickly, and even though the interstate was closed, many people were left stranded because the heavy snow prevented rescue vehicles from getting their safety sweeps done,

Darin Bergquist, the South Dakota Secretary of the Department of Transportation says the state can't afford the same problem this time.

"Get the sweep done before the conditions become so bad that we're putting our own people, their health, their life, in jeopardy by having them go out to do that final sweep," Bergquist said.

Bergquist says the DOT will meet at 8:00 a.m. to begin forming a plan for the storm. He anticipates any closures coming before the sun goes down. With preemptive closures likely, Weisser says the forecast for drivers is obvious.

"Just not a good weekend to be out traveling," Weisser said.

For the latest road conditions click on the following link: www.safetravelusa.com/sd