Twin Cities break century-old record with Christmas Day high of 54

The Twin Cities on Monday reached a record high of 54 degrees for Christmas Day, topping the former record of 51 set in 1922, according to the National Weather Service office in Chanhassen.

As of late afternoon, nearly half an inch of rain had fallen Monday in the metro area, about an inch short of the daily record set in 1982. Monday's rain made for a total of 1.47 inches for the Twin Cities this month.

The Twin Cities' record high for the day was reached shortly before 1 p.m.

Holiday travelers in west-central Minnesota were urged Monday to be careful while driving because a wintry mix of snow and freezing rain was expected to turn to all rain, making for slippery road conditions, the National Weather Service said. Winds were expected to gust 30 to 40 miles per hour across western Minnesota into Monday night.

Most of Minnesota experienced a brown Christmas, but temperatures are expected to drop by late week. A stalled storm is forecast to drop more than an inch of rain by Wednesday, according to meteorologists.