Early Christmas travel at risk as eastern US storm brings rain and gusty winds
As the weather flips from cold to warm and back this week, a storm may hinder early Christmas travel in the eastern United States with areas of rain, gusty winds and perhaps more snow.
Heavy rain and mountain snow are expected to cause travel disruptions throughout the Pacific Northwest in the days leading up to Christmas week.
As the first week of Christmas travel kicks off, a storm may cause messy travel conditions for some in the central and eastern parts of the United States during the middle and latter part of this week.
The snow on the ground in many areas now may not last the week as warmer air arrives.
Hanukkah has begun as universities conclude the fall semester, and many students and workers prepare to travel on roads and airports late this week into the weekend. AAA expects a record 122.4 million people to travel more than 50 miles between Dec. 20 and New Year’s Day.
One of the new storms forecast to bring renewed flooding and major travel disruptions to western Washington and Oregon this week will roll across the U.S. as persistent Arctic air finally exits.
In a rather unusual occurrence, the cold air gave up rather easily. High pressure moved off the mid-Atlantic coast instead of lingering over Atlantic Canada, allowing warmer air to continue to push east.
This setup will allow minimal resistance from the cold air, with some exceptions.
Pockets of cold may remain in portions of the Appalachians and New England, so as the leading edge of the storm's rain arrives, it could freeze on some colder surfaces. This will primarily be a concern in the higher terrain of northern New England.
For most locations, actual temperatures will surge into the 40s, 50s and even the 60s from Wednesday to Thursday night, but the breeze may result in AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures some 10-15 degrees lower.
Motorists should anticipate wet travel conditions from the Mississippi Valley to the Appalachians, spanning from Wednesday to Thursday evening.
The rain will then spread to much of the Atlantic Seaboard Thursday night. The combination of wet roads and runways and low visibility will lead to slick highways and airline delays.
Where snow is piled up, street flooding is possible due to blocked storm drains as rain, melting snow and rising temperatures boost runoff.
Gusty winds will accompany the storm as it moves across the eastern U.S. Gusts as high as 50 mph can occur across portions of the mid-Atlantic coast and Appalachian mountains up into New England. Higher gusts as much as 60 mph can occur near lakes Erie and Ontario, along the Northeast coast as well as some of the higher terrain in New Hampshire and Vermont. The AccuWeather Local StormMax™ is 80 mph.
Next round of cold arrives the weekend before Christmas
A surge of cold air will sweep in behind the storm from the northern Plains and Midwest Friday and then the Northeast during Friday night and Saturday.
Most roads will have a chance to dry off in the wake of the storm as colder air moves in. However, there may be some exceptions, especially in the Midwest. AccuWeather meteorologists are closely watching for the potential of rain changing to snow in the Appalachians Thursday night and Friday.
A brief period of lake-effect snow is expected to follow the storm from Thursday night to Friday night. Motorists may encounter difficult travel, especially in parts of Michigan, western and northern New York and northwestern Pennsylvania as a result.
Gusty winds may lead to airline delays in the Midwest and Northeast regions Thursday and Friday.
Moderate to major travel disruptions are anticipated from Washington to Northern California, Montana, Wyoming, northern Colorado and the Dakotas to end the week.
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