BLIZZARD WARNING: Whiteout conditions, dangerously cold wind chills expected ahead of holiday weekend

Strong winds will lead to blizzard like conditions with whiteout conditions at times and dangerously cold wind chills, making travel extremely difficult and hazardous heading into the holiday weekend.

A blizzard warning and wind chill warning will be in effect today through Saturday morning due to the strong winds leading to blizzard like conditions and dangerously cold wind chills. A blizzard warning is issued when we are expecting sustained winds or wind gusts of 35 mph or greater and visibility reduced down to a quarter of a mile (0.25 miles) or less for at least 3 hours. A wind chill warning is issued when dangerously cold wind chills are expected due to strong winds and can lead to frostbite and/or hyperthermia within 10 minutes. Both warnings are projected to expire at 12 pm on Saturday.

Today will start off on the more quiet side as winds gradually increase throughout the morning hours. Snow stopped falling through the overnight hours leaving behind the increasing winds and cold temperatures. Temperatures will hover around -8 through the afternoon hours with strong winds up to 25 mph and gusts up to 35 mph at times, this means we are expecting wind chills to range between -30 and -40 degrees. These strong winds will not only lead to dangerously cold wind chills around the area but blizzard like conditions as well. This means we are anticipating whiteout conditions at times with very little to no visibility. This will make travel extremely dangerous and hazardous not only today but Friday as well. Winds will not only lead to whiteout conditions at times but deep snow drifts around the area, along side roads, and near overpasses/bridges. Winds will continue to remain strong tonight as temperatures dip to around -11 by Friday morning. Wind chills overnight will range between -35 and -40 degrees.

Friday will remain hazardous with strong winds, blizzard like conditions, very cold temperatures and dangerously cold wind chills. Skies will teeter between partly cloudy and mostly cloudy though you may not see any sunshine in the area again due to the blowing snow expected. Temperatures will hover around -4 through the afternoon hours but winds will be strong up to 30 mph with gusts up to 45 mph possible. This means we are still looking at wind chills ranging between -30 and -40 degrees. Keep in mind that blizzard like conditions are still expected throughout the area on Friday due to the strong winds and light, powdery snow. This means we are looking at drastically reduced visibility and very hazardous travel conditions along with the dangerously cold wind chills. Skies will start to gradually clear up overnight Friday as temperatures dip to around -10 by Saturday morning. Wind chills overnight Friday will continue to hover between -30 and -40 degrees.

Saturday will be the day we start to see and notice improvements around the area. Despite seeing improvements in conditions, it may still take some time anywhere from hours to a couple of days to clear snow drifts and roads around the area due to the blizzard like conditions Thursday and Friday. Temperatures will still hover in the negatives around -1 through the afternoon hours but we will see sunshine! Winds will remain breezy up to 20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph possible. This will continue to lead to some blowing snow around the area along with harsh wind chills hovering between -25 and -30 degrees through the afternoon hours. Temperatures overnight will dip to around -11 with wind chills hovering near -30 as skies remain mostly clear.

Sunday will start off with sunshine before cloudy skies take over through the early to mid-afternoon hours. Temperatures will hover around 3 degrees through the afternoon hours with a breeze up to 15 mph and gusts up to 20 mph. This minor breeze will continue to lead to wind chills in the negatives, but not colder than -15 degrees. Clouds move in ahead of our next chance at some light snow. Snow is projected to move into the area through the early to mid-evening hours and remain in the area into the overnight hours. Temperatures will dip to around 0 by Monday morning.

Light snow may continue into Monday morning before wrapping up leaving behind mostly cloudy to partly cloudy skies. Temperatures next week will gradually rise throughout the week starting with highs around 10 degrees Monday afternoon and rising into the low-30s by Wednesday. From there, temperatures will continue to hover in the low-30s through the remainder of the week. A light breeze will also continue next week with winds up to 15 mph and gusts up to 20 mph at times. We are watching for another chance of snow to a wintery mix possible next Friday and Saturday ahead of New Years Eve Weekend. The type of precipitation is solely dependent on what the temperatures do. Right now, it’s looking more like snow but if temperatures rise into the low to mid-30s then we could see more of a wintery mix possible. We will continue to monitor this situation as we get closer to the weekend as a lot can fluctuate between now and then.

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