More than a dozen states lie within the path of powerful winter storm Blair, which will sweep across the Great Plains and the Northeast this weekend into early next week.
‘This will be an all-hazard storm,’ Dan DePodwin, Director of forecast operations at AccuWeather, reported Friday morning.
The storm will bring an Arctic outbreak that could see temperatures plummet as heavy snow and ice create slippery travel conditions, down tree limbs and trigger power outages.
At this time, the storm is spreading rain and high-elevation snow throughout the Pacific Midwest and the Rocky Mountains.
But by late Saturday, it will have emerged from the Rockies and tracked East, delivering a wintery mix to a wide swath of the central US while rain, thunderstorms and several tornadoes spread across southern states.
Snow could fall as far south as northern Oklahoma, and plowable accumulation will extend across 1,000 miles from central Nebraska to Ohio through early Monday.
Places like Kansas City, St. Louis, Indianapolis and Cincinnati could receive more than half a foot of snow, with up to a foot possible in Kansas City and its surrounding area.
According to AccuWeather’s Local StormMax feature, 30 inches is likely to accumulate somewhere from northeastern Kansas through northern Missouri to west-central Illinois.
Thirteen states lie within the path of powerful winter storm Blair, which will sweep across the Great Plains and the Northeast this weekend into early next week
The storm will bring an Arctic outbreak that could see temperatures plummet as heavy snow and ice create slippery travel conditions, down tree limbs and trigger power outages
The ice risk with this storm will also be significant, impacting a wide area from Wichita, Kansas to Roanoke, Virginia.
Heavy icing could impact communities from Springfield, Missouri to Lexington, Kentucky, with the most severe icing in cities such as Paducah and Joplin.
Much of Eastern Kentucky will likely see up to a half inch of ice.
‘Ice storms like this have been known to cause power outages across a pretty large area,’ DePodwin said.
‘Certainly now is the time to stock up on supplies. If you do have a generator, make sure you know how to operate it, make sure it’s not in a place that it is venting into your home.’
The ice and snow will not be going anywhere anytime soon. A mass of dangerously cold air will move into the region in the wake of this storm, and communities could be left without electricity for several days.
This could spark a great need for shelters to be set up to account for the affected population, AccuWeather senior meteorologist Courtney Travis reported.
As for the Northeast, the storm will mostly remain south of New York City. But plowable snow is expected to accumulate in Washington DC, Baltimore and Philadelphia, with some sleet mixed in.
Snow could fall as far south as northern Oklahoma, and plowable accumulation will extend across 1,000 miles from central Nebraska to Ohio through early Monday
The ice risk with this storm will also be significant, impacting a wide area from Wichita, Kansas to Roanoke, Virginia
The cold temperatures expected to linger after this storm could lead to more winter storms in the eastern US into mid-January
‘The western suburbs of Baltimore and Washington, D.C., could have snowfall totals nearing half a foot by the end of the storm,’ said AccuWeather Meteorologist Brandon Buckingham.
Higher elevations in West Virginia and western Maryland could see accumulation up to 15 inches.
Travel conditions could become treacherous in the affected area Sunday night through Monday.
Sleet and freezing rain will also have an extensive impact, particularly near the Appalachians.
Late Sunday night into Monday, ice could extend to the coast of Virginia before the storm moves offshore.
Meanwhile, southern states should brace for rain, thunderstorms and the risk of several tornadoes this weekend as cold air in the Plains clashes with warm, wet air from the Gulf of Mexico.
‘A line of thunderstorms is expected to develop across eastern Texas Sunday afternoon, strengthening as they move into Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama through Sunday night,’ said AccuWeather Meteorologist Gwen Fieweger.
Six to 12 tornadoes are also possible for this region during the day Sunday into Sunday night, DePodwin warned.
Along the Interstate 10 and 20 corridors, powerful wind gusts, hail and flooding downpours may occur.
The cold temperatures expected to linger after this storm could lead to more winter storms in the eastern US into mid-January.
