UPDATED: 5:45PM SAT 3/24/18
All warnings have been allowed to expire as snow continues to move out of the region.
UPDATED: 7:15AM FRI 3/23/18
A Winter Storm WARNING has been issued for Lee and Whiteside Counties beginning Friday evening through much of Saturday.
A very complex and powerful early-spring winter storm will impact the region to kick off the weekend bringing rounds of rain mixed with snow, followed by moderate to heavy snow into Saturday morning.
Areas of light rain will overspread the region after 7pm Friday evening before mixing with and changing to all snow by midnight Saturday morning. The snow will continue through the early afternoon hours and could be heavy at times causing slick travel conditions.
A very wide spectrum of snowfall accumulations are expected with the heaviest totals falling in the southwest portion of the area and the lightest in the northeast. Most areas will pick up at least 4 inches with 6 inches common. Isolated areas of 12 inches or more will be possible, especially in areas that see enhancement from thundersnow.
This snowfall will contain a high amount of moisture and will be quite heavy. Areas that receive significant accumulations could experience power outages due to the heavy weight of the snow on power lines.
Winds are expected to increase through Saturday gusting to over 30 MPH at times. Due to the heavier nature of the snow, blowing and drifting is expected to be limited.
Again, travel is expected to be significantly impacted Saturday morning and should be avoided if possible.
Whatever snow we do pick up will quickly melt by the middle of next week as temperatures head for the upper 50s. We’ll also introduce a chance for showers and thunderstorms Monday night into Tuesday. Some of that rainfall could be heavy possibly causing some flooding concerns. Stay tuned!
