Winter Weather Continues

We are still in the fall season but it has certainly been very winter-like throughout the month of December. Winter officially kicks off at 1:08 AM on Saturday and it will bring with it the next storm system which could cause all kinds of traveling problems on this holiday weekend. Expect a wintery mix of precipitation on Saturday morning but colder air will arrive with a cold front and the precipitation type should switch to snow by around noon. Earlier this month we had a winter storm that started off with snow and eventually switched to freezing rain and this weekend it will be the exact opposite. If we end up experiencing freezing rain on Saturday morning that could make roads extremely slick as snow eventually falls on top of it. Once the snow does come it will likely get the heaviest on Saturday evening and it could continue through the night. As of right now total snow accumulations between 2 and 6 inches are expected. Below are images of two forecast models and the expected snowfall by early Sunday morning. Both models indicate that the higher snow accumulations will occur towards the southeastern portions of the viewing area.

    As far as today goes, fog will cause some traveling problems. A Dense Fog Advisory is in effect until noon for all of the counties in the viewing area except Jackson and Monroe. This morning visibilities were down as low as 0 to 0.25 miles in southeastern Minnesota so if you are traveling west this morning you will likely encounter some thicker fog.

Drive Safe and Happy Holidays!

Andrew Thut
News 19 Forecast Team