Clipper and coastal storms to deliver snow, slippery travel to Northeast prior to Christmas

Accumulating snow from a Midwest clipper storm is on the move and has eyes for the Northeast prior to the end of the week. And, in some areas, a coastal storm will join in and expand wintry travel problems.

A storm traveling all the way from western Canada and a new storm brewing along the Atlantic coast will team up to bring areas of accumulating snow and slippery travel from Friday to early Saturday to the northeastern United States. AccuWeather meteorologists warn some of the worst conditions may occur during a busy travel time.

A storm with accumulating snow is tracking southeastward across the Upper Midwest, and as of midday on Thursday, Fargo, North Dakota, Minneapolis and Madison, Wisconsin, have already received a few inches of snow.

Up to a few inches of snow will fall on Chicago, Milwaukee and Detroit from Thursday evening to Friday morning. Substantial travel delays are likely on the roads and at the airports. Travel along the Interstate 80/90 corridor will be slowed down by the snow.

Even farther south, along Interstate 70, the storm will bring periods of snow and snow showers on Friday and Friday night, with a coating to an inch or two of snow accumulating in Indianapolis, Pittsburgh and Columbus, Ohio.

Conditions will become more complex as the clipper storm reaches the central Appalachians later Friday and Friday night. It will continue to produce areas of snow and snow showers. However, the snow will become more chaotic with a general coating of an inch or two from West Virginia, northern Maryland and northern Virginia to Pennsylvania, New Jersey, central and southern New York and southwestern New England. Pockets where a moderate to heavy amount of snow can fall, on the order of several inches, are possible just about anywhere in this zone.

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“The danger is the snow can quickly erupt and come down at a steady clip in some areas during the afternoon and evening rush hour on Friday in the Northeast,” AccuWeather Chief On-Air Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said. The risk includes the metro areas of New York City, Baltimore and Philadelphia, Allentown, Scranton and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Just as the general weekend traffic picks up along with those heading out for Christmas travel, a steadier rate of snow can quickly cover the ground as road surfaces cool. A slippery mess with travel slowing to a crawl as well as accidents may result.

Deicing operations will increase at area airports throughout much of the mid-Atlantic, central Appalachians and southern New England.

While the clipper storm alone will cause its share of slippery travel, the coastal storm could bring a period of heavy snow with increasing winds to eastern Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Down East Maine and the potential for the heavier snow to reach back across portions of Long Island, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and southwestern Maine spanning Friday night to Saturday morning.

Should the coastal storm develop quickly to its full potential and hug the coast, a plowable snowfall could occur in Providence, Rhode Island and Boston, as well as perhaps even Hartford, Connecticut; Portsmouth, New Hampshire; and Portland, Maine.

“Conditions around New York City are tricky,” Rayno said. “They can get a coating to an inch or two of snow from the clipper storm, perhaps a bit more if the coastal storm tracks farther west, or they could be in a rip-off zone where nothing to a few flurries occur.”

As the coastal storm strengthens and moves over Atlantic Canada, blizzard conditions and heavy snow will unfold on Saturday while gusty winds in the region will draw much colder air southward.

Astronomical winter officially arrives at 4:20 a.m. EST on Saturday.

There’s a good chance that where snow falls into Saturday, it may stick around until Christmas morning in at least part of the region.

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