Winter Storm Alert: Essential Tips for Protecting Your Family and Home

 "In a Glance"

Be prepared with important tips and updates on winter storm warnings. 

From this weekend through Monday, central and eastern America will be hit by the most extensive winter storm of the season. Travel will be hampered this weekend by snow and ice in the Midwest and Plains. Winter's chaos will spread into the Mid-Atlantic from Sunday evening to Monday. The winter storm is currently moving southeast from the Pacific Ocean, delivering snow to the mountains and rain to the northern Rockies. The Plains will see snowfall by Saturday morning.

"Warning of Winter."

Most areas of Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska are under a winter storm warning, with heavy snowfall or a substantial mix of snow and ice predicted to start late Saturday night. This covers places like St. Louis and Kansas City. 

It will be dangerous to travel in certain areas, and power disruptions are possible. Winter storm warnings are also in effect for parts of Montana, where visibility will be severely reduced by strong winds and blowing snow. 

Learn how to stay safe during severe winter weather conditions

Southern Missouri is under an ice storm warning. From late Saturday night through Monday morning, there will likely be a significant buildup of ice. Power outages are expected, and the roads in this area will become impassable.

Timing 

Saturday and Saturday evening: ** There will be snowfall in the central and northern Rockies. By the evening, there will be more snow and ice visible on the plains. Overnight, cold weather is expected to move eastward toward the central Mississippi Valley.

Travel conditions could be especially dangerous in places like Kansas City, St. Louis, and Wichita, Kansas, especially later on Saturday.

Sunday evening: ** There may be periods of heavy snowfall from Kansas to West Virginia during the day. Strong gusts and snowfall may be present in certain places, making visibility worse. Areas from northeastern Oklahoma and southeastern Kansas to portions of the middle Mississippi Valley, Ohio Valley, and Appalachians might get hail, freezing rain, and sleet south of the area with the most snowfall.

In areas where precipitation and ice conditions are anticipated, travel should be avoided. Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Louisville, and St. Louis are among these cities.

Travel will be hazardous when the storm's chilly weather moves eastward into the Mid-Atlantic region by Sunday night, affecting cities including Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Washington, D.C.

Winter weather can cause travel delays or disruptions in cities including Baltimore, Charleston (West Virginia), Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Washington, D.C.

As it moves from west to east, the cold weather system will gradually wane by Monday night, but traffic in some places may still be hampered by ice and snow that remains on the ground on Tuesday morning.

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"How much snowfall and snow can we expect?"

The central plains and Midwest, especially the regions marked in dark purple on the map below, could receive at least 6 inches of snowfall. This encompasses areas in central Illinois, southern Indiana, Ohio, northeastern Kansas, Missouri, and maybe portions of northern Kentucky. Particularly in places where snow layers are still in place, some of these places might get more than a foot of snow. At least light to moderate snowfall is possible across the Mid-Atlantic. Up to 6 inches of snow might fall in some portions of the Baltimore and Washington, D.C. metropolitan areas. The amount of snowfall may be less if sleet develops in the Washington, D.C., region. A few inches of snow could possibly fall on Philadelphia further north.

Problems could be most severe from central and southern Kansas to the Ohio Valley and the Appalachians due to sleet and freezing rain. There will probably be travel delays, and in some places, the buildup of freezing rain may be dangerous. On the map, areas indicated in dark pink and purple might have sporadic power outages and at least some tree damage. Monday: ** As the new workweek begins, travelers in the Mid-Atlantic region may see wintry conditions starting Monday morning. Snowfall is also predicted to continue in parts of the Ohio Valley and Appalachians.