Two St. Paul parents were arrested in connection with their toddler's death Wednesday

This is Minnesota Today for Thursday, December 26th. I'm Jacob Aloy, and here's what's happening in Minnesota. Two St. Paul parents were arrested in connection with their toddler's death yesterday. Faven Gorezgere has more.

St. Paul, police say officers found the one and a half-year-old child unresponsive Wednesday afternoon at a home in the city's Dayton's Bluff neighborhood. The child was transported to Regent's Hospital, where they were later pronounced dead. Police say the preliminary investigation indicates that narcotics may have played a role in the toddler's death. A 38-year-old man and a 31-year-old woman are in custody pending formal charges. The name of the child has not been released.

The federal government is proposing to designate some rivers as critical habitat for endangered mussels. Kirsty Morone reports. Freshwater mussels play a key role in the aquatic ecosystem. They're filter feeders that help remove pollutants. Nick Yutrop is a biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. One mussel can clean 10 gallons within just a few minutes, you know, once you have a bunch of mussels. It's basically a filtering mechanism, you know, and cleans the river.

Muscles were once abundant throughout Minnesota's waterways, but their populations have declined due to water pollution, dams, and invasive species. The Fish and Wildlife Service has a recovery plan for four muscle species, including three found in Minnesota, sheep nose, snuff box, and spectacle case. It's proposing to designate nearly 4,000 miles of river as critical muscle habitat. The designation will help guide federal restoration efforts, but does not restrict private activities. I'm Christian Maron.

MnDOT is sorting through thousands of submissions for its annual name a snowplow contest. The agency received more than 7,300 entries by the time the submission period closed last Friday. While that's a lot, it's down from more than 8,000 last year and more than 10,000 two years ago. MnDOT staff will pick a slate of names to go up for public vote around the middle of next month and the top eight vote getters will go on plows in each of MnDOT's eight districts around the state.

Last winter, the name receiving the most votes was Taylor Drift. A $1 million Minnesota Lottery Prize has gone unclaimed all year. If it's not claimed by December 31st, the money will go back to the state. Cara Miles has more. Did you buy a lottery ticket from Coburn's grocery store and Delano late last year? You might have won a million dollars. The Minnesota Lottery is still looking for the lucky winner of its Minnesota Millionaire Raffle Drawing last New Year's Day.

While it's rare for a prize this large to go unclaimed, it's not unheard of. Sometimes people lose their ticket or unaware that they've won.

but there is a one-year time limit. Unclaimed lottery prizes go to the state general fund to pay for other state programs and services. Minnesota Lottery officials reported about $17.8 million in prizes went unclaimed in 2023. Most of those lower tier amounts. So check your pockets for old lottery tickets. $1 million could be waiting. I'm Kyra Miles.

In sports, the Timberwolves beat the Dallas Mavericks yesterday, 105 to 99. Anthony Edwards scored 26 points with the win, the Wolves, and the losing streak at three games. They tip off against the Rockets tomorrow night in Houston.

And looking at the weather, temperatures were in the mid-30s across much of Minnesota today, and even warmer conditions and rain are in the forecast for the coming days. NPR meteorologist Sven Sundgaard says parts of southern Minnesota might see highs in the 40s tomorrow and Saturday. It's going to be a soggy Friday Saturday, even though we're almost into January. This is mostly going to be a rainfall event for the Twin Cities in southeastern Minnesota. Rain will develop early tomorrow morning in southeastern Minnesota, and then those showers will fill in and march north

Mostly the eastern half of the state will see precipitation. Western Minnesota will stay dry." Sven says parts of eastern Minnesota could see more than half an inch of rain, which will wash away much of the snow that's on the ground. As colder air moves in, the rain could change over to snow, especially in northeast Minnesota, with a few inches possible. Lowes tonight are expected in the 30s across the region.

That's it for Minnesota Today, I'm Jacob Aloy, thanks for listening. We'll be back in the morning with an update. Until then, enjoy your evening.