With dangerous temperatures expected this weekend, Minneapolis City officials urge everyone to take precautions. Frostbite can happen in just minutes during extreme cold temperatures.

Hennepin County offers warming station options throughout Minneapolis and the Twin Cities. Additional locations can be found at the Salvation Army and other organizations when temperatures drop below zero.

• Stay inside as much as possible and limit time spent outside.
• Dress in layers and keep clothes and shoes dry.
• Check on family, friends, neighbors and older adults who may live alone or need help.
• Know the symptoms of frostbite and hypothermia. Call your health care provider if symptoms are severe.
• Keep a winter survival kit in your vehicle.
• Additional cold weather safety advice.

Be protected from heat shutoff

The Cold Weather Rule is now in effect through April 30. The rule prevents your heat from being shut off, even if you can’t pay your bill.

Find help and resources on the State of Minnesota website. Information is also available in Español/Spanish, Hmoob/Hmong and Soomaali/Somali.

Prepare your home for the cold weather season

Colder weather requires preparing your home to keep you and your family safe and comfortable. Your cold weather checklist includes:

• Keeping anything that can burn at least three feet away from space heaters.
• Turning space heaters off when you leave the room or go to bed.
• Never using your oven to heat the home. Watch the City of Minneapolis video about heating safety.
• Having a professional inspection of furnaces and fireplaces once a year.
• Making sure your home has working smoke and fire detectors.
• Replacing furnace filters as needed.
• Caulking and weather-stripping are two simple ways to prevent drafts and keep the heat in. Learn more about air sealing your home in the winter.

Get winter vehicle theft safety tips

During the colder months, car thieves can take advantage of residents who leave their vehicles running unattended. Every year, running vehicles are stolen with dogs, and even children, still inside. 

Please note that even if you lock the doors, it only takes seconds to break a window or bypass a lock.

• Be aware that it is against City ordinance to leave your key in the ignition while you are not in your vehicle. In fact, if your car is reported stolen and your keys were in it, it may also invalidate your insurance coverage.
• It is legal to use a remote start because your key is not in the ignition and the vehicle cannot be moved.
• But do take your key fobs with you and don’t keep extra fobs or keys in your car.

Also, please be mindful of Snow Emergency Notifications. Call 612-348-SNOW or visit the City’s website for more information.

Know the minimum heating requirements for rental properties

Rental properties must have safe and effective heating systems. From Oct. 1 to April 30, the minimum heat requirement is 68°F.

If you are a renter and your heat isn’t working:

• Notify the property owner or manager right away.
• If they don’t take steps to fix it immediately, call 311 to report it.
• Outside of 311 hours, call 911 to report low heat or no heat. No matter the time of day, an inspector will follow up with you as soon as possible to address loss of heat.

If you are a rental property owner or manager:

• Be sure that renters know how to reach you to report urgent issues.
• If a renter notifies you that their heat isn’t working, take immediate steps to fix it.
• If it can’t be fixed right away, provide space heaters for each affected unit until heat is restored.

Renter rights

Understand that pets get cold, too

Minneapolis Animal Care and Control reminds community members to keep pets inside. If it’s too cold for you, it’s too cold for them.

• Never leave pets unattended in a parked car for any amount of time.
• Like people, cats and dogs can get frostbite and hypothermia.
• Leaving pets outside in the cold can result in citations of $500 or more, seizure of the animal, or the death of the animal from the cold.
• Anyone who sees an animal outside without shelter or in an unattended car can call Minneapolis Animal Care & Control immediately – in Minneapolis, that’s 311 (612-673-3000). If they believe the situation to be life-threatening and the animal is nonresponsive, they should call 911.