Last month, retired lead forecaster Craig Sanders of the National Weather Service Duluth Forecast Office noted signs of the dreaded "polar vortex" returning in late January of this year. It sure looks like he was right! Several daily cold-temperature records were set for a few of our towns last month. There's even been talk of setting a new state record, after spending nearly 23 years in the hands of Tower-Soudan. This article was written just before the deep freeze hit, so if the record was indeed broken, you'll know it by the time this hits print.

As this region's longest-serving weatherp...