An ice storm in parts of the Northeast and Midwest through Thursday is poised to be followed by another winter storm this weekend with hazardous travel conditions from a wintry mess of freezing rain, sleet and snow.
Here’s a glance at what to expect from both storms.
Storm No. 1: Wednesday-Thursday
Low pressure will haul in a slug of moisture toward cold high pressure, allowing ice and snow to develop in the Midwest, Great Lakes, mid-Atlantic and Northeast, especially by Wednesday night.
This first system has been named Winter Storm Freya by The Weather Channel.
(MORE: Why We Name Winter Storms)
Latest Alerts
Winter weather advisories have been issued for large parts of the Midwest, Appalachians, mid-Atlantic and Northeast, including Baltimore, Chicago, New York and Pittsburgh. Difficult travel conditions are possible in these areas.
Ice storm warnings are in effect for the central Appalachians. This area has the greatest chance to see power outages, tree damage and impossible travel because of heavier ice accumulations.
(MORE: 5 Reasons Freezing Rain Is The Worst)
Storm Timing
-Freezing rain and sleet will develop in northern Missouri and Iowa before spreading across the southern Great Lakes later Wednesday and overnight, including Chicago, Cleveland and Detroit. Keep in mind even small amounts of icing could make travel hazardous (pink and purple shaded areas in the map below), so it’s best to stay off roads.
-Portions of the mid-Atlantic, including Baltimore, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., might see hazardous travel conditions from freezing rain and sleet Wednesday night into early Thursday morning before transitioning to rain by later Thursday morning.
-The Interstate 95 corridor from New York City to Boston could start as snowfall or a wintry mix late Wednesday night or Thursday, but these areas will likely change to rain at some point during the day on Thursday.
-In the interior, significant icing is possible in central Pennsylvania.
-The area with the best chance to see precipitation remaining snow is from central and northern Minnesota to the northern Great Lakes and northern New England.
Wednesday Night’s Forecast
Ice, Snow Forecast
-Icing from freezing rain could be enough for hazardous travel for at least a short time in any of the locations shaded pink on the map below, spreading from west to east across these areas Wednesday into Wednesday night and Thursday. As mentioned earlier, even small amounts of ice could create hazardous travel.
-Heavier totals capable of breaking some tree limbs and causing scattered power outages are possible in the central Appalachians, especially central Pennsylvania to eastern West Virginia and western Virginia.
-We don’t anticipate heavy snowfall totals from this system in most areas, but at least a coating to a few inches is forecast from North Dakota and central and northern Minnesota to upstate New York and northern New England.
-Any accumulating snow near and west of Interstate 95 from New York to Boston should be light before changing to a wintry mix and rain.
Storm No. 2: Thursday-Sunday
This second winter storm in a matter of days will enter the West late week and then affect the Midwest and Northeast over the weekend. It has been named Winter Storm Garnett by The Weather Channel.
-This system will first spread snow from California’s Sierra Nevada into the northern Rockies Thursday through Friday.
-It’s a bit early for details, but snow and a stripe of ice seems likely to develop by Saturday from the Northern Plains and Great Lakes to parts of the mid-Atlantic and Northeast.
-The Interstate 95 corridor could at least start with a burst of snow, including around New York City and Philadelphia, before changing to a wintry mix and/or rain. Boston might remain snow for a longer period of time and pile up several inches.
-This system is a quick-mover, so by Sunday much of its leftover snowfall will be over New England as the storm departs.
Next Week
-Long-term computer model forecast guidance is hinting this active winter storm pattern might persist in the Midwest and East next week.
-That means one or more rounds of additional snow and ice are possible, but it’s too early for details.
-With colder air advancing southward, there’s a chance the areas of snow and/or ice might be farther south compared to what we are seeing through this week.
-Check back to weather.com and The Weather Channel app throughout this week for more details on the forecast through this weekend and beyond.
Chris Dolce has been a senior digital meteorologist with weather.com for nearly 15 years after beginning his career with The Weather Channel in the early 2000s.
