Monster winter storm wallops Northeast
By
Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Feb 19, 2021 8:46 PM EDT
Yet another massive winter storm got underway in the Northeast on Wednesday night as heavy snow shifted across the region. New York City is expected to be right in the heart of the snowstorm, which AccuWeather forecasters say will be the last in a veritable freight train of weather systems. The long-duration storm could snarl travel and cut power as it continues to impact the region into Friday, unleashing a host of weather hazards.
Near the I-95 corridor, snow fell fast and furious on Thursday. More than 9 inches of snow piled up in King of Prussia, a suburb located to the north and west of Philadelphia, by early Thursday afternoon.
An intense snow band with rates greater than an inch an hour shifted northward from central New Jersey and crept toward New York City, a city that is no stranger to heavy snowfalls this winter. Prior to the storm’s arrival, the Big Apple had already picked up nearly twice its normal snowfall with nearly 33.8 inches compared to a normal of 17.1 inches from Dec. 1 to Feb. 17.
New York City will be in the thick of the heaviest snowfall with a total of 6 to 10 inches of snow predicted in Manhattan by midday Friday after a second wave of snow moves in later Thursday night.
A broader swath of 6-12 inches of snow is forecast to occur from northeastern West Virginia through central Massachusetts and perhaps the southern tier of New Hampshire. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 18 inches is predicted in this zone.
Farther south, a snowfall accumulation of 3 to 6 inches is forecast in Philadelphia, where mixing with sleet will limit snow totals. Just north and west in the suburbs, heavier snowfall amounts of 6-12 inches are anticipated.
Snowfall climbed above the average pace for the season during mid-February in the City of Brotherly Love. As of Feb. 17, Philadelphia has recorded 19.7 inches of snow so far compared to the normal amount of 15.4 inches since Dec. 1.
So far this season, snowfall totals have been lagging in the nation’s capital. A mere 4.7 inches of snow fell in Washington, D.C., ahead of the late-week storm. On average, the nation's capital picks up 11.5 inches of snow from Dec. 1 to Feb. 17, according to the National Weather Service. The storm late this week could unload 1 to 3 inches, plus an icy mix.
A mix of freezing rain and sleet is anticipated near the storm’s center, where mild air will ride over top of cold air at the surface. Even farther south, a disruptive and dangerous ice storm will unfold across much of Virginia and parts of North Carolina, southeastern Maryland, Delaware and West Virginia.
There is the potential for a very snowy and difficult drive on Thursday from the central Appalachians to the mid-Atlantic coast.
Across the interior, Pittsburgh, forecast by AccuWeather to pick up 3-6 inches of snow from the storm, has received nearly two times its average snowfall through the middle of February with a total of 54 inches as of Wednesday midday.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Due to a double-barreled structure to the storm, this will be another long-duration event that can last into the start of the day Friday in the mid-Atlantic and into Friday afternoon in New England.
The heaviest snow with the storm is forecast to slide south of northern and western New York state and northern New England this time. Boston may end up on the northern edge of the heavy snow with close to 4 inches forecast.
Travel conditions in Boston will be slippery into Thursday night and the second wave of snow is likely to make for slippery travel during much of Friday.
Some ice is likely to occur across part of West Virginia and in portions of the central Appalachians, the upper mid-Atlantic coast and even across the southeastern part of New England at the height of the storm, which may cut down on accumulation somewhat.
Expect travel disruptions to continue in much of the Northeast into the end of the week as the storm slows its forward speed. Winter storm warnings and watches remained in effect across much of the Northeast on Thursday.
Snow cover has been on a tremendous upswing in the past couple of weeks across much of the nation as storm after storm has swept across the country. The coverage is nearly double that of last February at this time.
The storm wreaking havoc in the Northeast already has a long history, and AccuWeather meteorologists have been tracking it for nearly a week. It brought heavy snow and ice to the Northwest soon after pushing in from the Pacific early this week. The system then dove across the south-central United States on Tuesday and Wednesday, unleashing another round of disruptive and heavy wintry precipitation.
"This storm and its predecessor a couple of days earlier, accompanied by once-in-a-generation outbreak of frigid air, has left behind an absolute mess in the South Central states and is on the move," AccuWeather Chief On-Air Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said.
"Already 73.2% of the lower 48 states is covered in snow, and we will build on the existing amount of snow on the ground with this storm," Rayno said.
The 73.2% snow cover, which was measured on Tuesday, set a new record as the highest percentage of the contiguous 48 states to be covered by snow since records began back in 2003. The old record was 70.9% on Jan. 12, 2011.
Prior to the new storm's arrival, many areas of the Northeast had a snow depth of 6, 12 and even 18 inches of snow or greater.
There is a glimmer of hope for those dealing with power outages, major disruptions in daily activities or just plain exhaustion from all the winter storms. Temperatures are finally predicted to trend upward next week as the weather pattern shifts.
Weaker and quicker-moving storms are also anticipated with the upcoming change in the weather, but AccuWeather meteorologists are quick to point out that winter is far from over. Some systems could still bring periods of snow and ice to some areas.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, Fubo, and Verizon Fios.
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News / Winter Weather
Monster winter storm wallops Northeast
By Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Feb 19, 2021 8:46 PM EDT
Yet another massive winter storm got underway in the Northeast on Wednesday night as heavy snow shifted across the region. New York City is expected to be right in the heart of the snowstorm, which AccuWeather forecasters say will be the last in a veritable freight train of weather systems. The long-duration storm could snarl travel and cut power as it continues to impact the region into Friday, unleashing a host of weather hazards.
Near the I-95 corridor, snow fell fast and furious on Thursday. More than 9 inches of snow piled up in King of Prussia, a suburb located to the north and west of Philadelphia, by early Thursday afternoon.
An intense snow band with rates greater than an inch an hour shifted northward from central New Jersey and crept toward New York City, a city that is no stranger to heavy snowfalls this winter. Prior to the storm’s arrival, the Big Apple had already picked up nearly twice its normal snowfall with nearly 33.8 inches compared to a normal of 17.1 inches from Dec. 1 to Feb. 17.
New York City will be in the thick of the heaviest snowfall with a total of 6 to 10 inches of snow predicted in Manhattan by midday Friday after a second wave of snow moves in later Thursday night.
A broader swath of 6-12 inches of snow is forecast to occur from northeastern West Virginia through central Massachusetts and perhaps the southern tier of New Hampshire. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 18 inches is predicted in this zone.
Farther south, a snowfall accumulation of 3 to 6 inches is forecast in Philadelphia, where mixing with sleet will limit snow totals. Just north and west in the suburbs, heavier snowfall amounts of 6-12 inches are anticipated.
Snowfall climbed above the average pace for the season during mid-February in the City of Brotherly Love. As of Feb. 17, Philadelphia has recorded 19.7 inches of snow so far compared to the normal amount of 15.4 inches since Dec. 1.
So far this season, snowfall totals have been lagging in the nation’s capital. A mere 4.7 inches of snow fell in Washington, D.C., ahead of the late-week storm. On average, the nation's capital picks up 11.5 inches of snow from Dec. 1 to Feb. 17, according to the National Weather Service. The storm late this week could unload 1 to 3 inches, plus an icy mix.
A mix of freezing rain and sleet is anticipated near the storm’s center, where mild air will ride over top of cold air at the surface. Even farther south, a disruptive and dangerous ice storm will unfold across much of Virginia and parts of North Carolina, southeastern Maryland, Delaware and West Virginia.
There is the potential for a very snowy and difficult drive on Thursday from the central Appalachians to the mid-Atlantic coast.
Across the interior, Pittsburgh, forecast by AccuWeather to pick up 3-6 inches of snow from the storm, has received nearly two times its average snowfall through the middle of February with a total of 54 inches as of Wednesday midday.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Due to a double-barreled structure to the storm, this will be another long-duration event that can last into the start of the day Friday in the mid-Atlantic and into Friday afternoon in New England.
The heaviest snow with the storm is forecast to slide south of northern and western New York state and northern New England this time. Boston may end up on the northern edge of the heavy snow with close to 4 inches forecast.
Travel conditions in Boston will be slippery into Thursday night and the second wave of snow is likely to make for slippery travel during much of Friday.
Some ice is likely to occur across part of West Virginia and in portions of the central Appalachians, the upper mid-Atlantic coast and even across the southeastern part of New England at the height of the storm, which may cut down on accumulation somewhat.
Expect travel disruptions to continue in much of the Northeast into the end of the week as the storm slows its forward speed. Winter storm warnings and watches remained in effect across much of the Northeast on Thursday.
Snow cover has been on a tremendous upswing in the past couple of weeks across much of the nation as storm after storm has swept across the country. The coverage is nearly double that of last February at this time.
The storm wreaking havoc in the Northeast already has a long history, and AccuWeather meteorologists have been tracking it for nearly a week. It brought heavy snow and ice to the Northwest soon after pushing in from the Pacific early this week. The system then dove across the south-central United States on Tuesday and Wednesday, unleashing another round of disruptive and heavy wintry precipitation.
"This storm and its predecessor a couple of days earlier, accompanied by once-in-a-generation outbreak of frigid air, has left behind an absolute mess in the South Central states and is on the move," AccuWeather Chief On-Air Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said.
"Already 73.2% of the lower 48 states is covered in snow, and we will build on the existing amount of snow on the ground with this storm," Rayno said.
The 73.2% snow cover, which was measured on Tuesday, set a new record as the highest percentage of the contiguous 48 states to be covered by snow since records began back in 2003. The old record was 70.9% on Jan. 12, 2011.
Prior to the new storm's arrival, many areas of the Northeast had a snow depth of 6, 12 and even 18 inches of snow or greater.
There is a glimmer of hope for those dealing with power outages, major disruptions in daily activities or just plain exhaustion from all the winter storms. Temperatures are finally predicted to trend upward next week as the weather pattern shifts.
Weaker and quicker-moving storms are also anticipated with the upcoming change in the weather, but AccuWeather meteorologists are quick to point out that winter is far from over. Some systems could still bring periods of snow and ice to some areas.
Related:
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, Fubo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo