Lake-effect snow showers, squalls to cause treacherous travel around Great Lakes
By
Renee Duff, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Dec 10, 2019 12:58 PM EDT
On Monday morning, Dec. 9, snow plagued the roads of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Motorists around the Great Lakes will be faced with slippery, snow-covered roads and reduced visibility as lake-effect snow blankets the region through midweek.
Lake-effect snow ramped up on Monday night downwind of lakes Superior and Michigan as frigid air streamed over the warmer, unfrozen waters.
As the cold pushes eastward into midweek, communities downstream of lakes Erie, Huron and Ontario can anticipate bursts of snow and slippery travel.
"The best chance for several inches of snow to accumulate will be across northern Michigan, northwestern Pennsylvania and western New York," AccuWeather Meteorologist Tyler Roys said.
A general 3-6 inches of snow are forecast across these areas with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 14 inches possible where snow bands persist.
As of 11 a.m. EST Tuesday, the general public reported that approximately 3 inches of snow fell in portions of Allegan County in western Michigan.
By 6 a.m. EST Wednesday, snowfall totals in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan had climbed to around 10 inches in Ontonagon, Houghton and Gogebic Counties.
During Wednesday morning, a band of accumulating lake-effect snow swung northward and crossed the Buffalo, New York area, prior to reaching the Niagara Peninsula of Ontario and areas just west of Rochester, New York. The band of snow shifted back to the south of the city during Wednesday afternoon.
Winds high above the ground will be shifting direction throughout the event, limiting the potential for the same locations to get clobbered by heavy snow for hours or even days. Several feet of snow can pile up when winds blow from generally the same direction throughout a lake-effect snow event.
Forecasters warn that sudden, intense bursts of snow that drastically reduce visibility, known as snow squalls, can occur downwind of the lakes during the setup through midweek.
Snow squalls are notorious for triggering chain-reaction accidents on the highways, similar to what occurred along Interstate 80 in Iowa on Monday.
People with travel plans around the Great Lakes through midweek should keep in mind that their journey could become difficult and dangerous due to reduced visibility and snow-packed roads. Poor driving conditions are likely at times along stretches of I-75, I-81, I-86 and I-90.
Sneaky patch of snow to occur south of lake-effect
"In addition to lake-effect snow, a weak and moisture-starved storm scooted eastward across the northern parts of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio on Wednesday," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said.
Just enough snow fell to coat roads in these areas with a few spots picking up an inch to perhaps 2 inches of snow.
"The system is likely to survive the trip across a portion of Pennsylvania into Wednesday night, where a coating of snow has the potential to make some roads slippery," Sosnowski said.
What follows lake-effect and light snow?
Diminishing winds will cause the lake-effect snow showers and squalls to taper off across the region by Thursday morning, but AccuWeather meteorologists say the next snow threat will be knocking on the door.
A fast-moving storm system is expected to sweep from the northern Plains during late Wednesday and Wednesday night to the upper Great Lakes on Thursday. This clipper storm is forecast to bring a light to moderate snow accumulation along its path.
Many of the same areas that were whitened with a fresh snowfall at the beginning of the week are likely to another round of wintry weather with this system.
Download the free AccuWeather app to check the forecast in your area. Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo
News / Winter Weather
Lake-effect snow showers, squalls to cause treacherous travel around Great Lakes
By Renee Duff, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Dec 10, 2019 12:58 PM EDT
On Monday morning, Dec. 9, snow plagued the roads of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Motorists around the Great Lakes will be faced with slippery, snow-covered roads and reduced visibility as lake-effect snow blankets the region through midweek.
Lake-effect snow ramped up on Monday night downwind of lakes Superior and Michigan as frigid air streamed over the warmer, unfrozen waters.
As the cold pushes eastward into midweek, communities downstream of lakes Erie, Huron and Ontario can anticipate bursts of snow and slippery travel.
"The best chance for several inches of snow to accumulate will be across northern Michigan, northwestern Pennsylvania and western New York," AccuWeather Meteorologist Tyler Roys said.
A general 3-6 inches of snow are forecast across these areas with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 14 inches possible where snow bands persist.
As of 11 a.m. EST Tuesday, the general public reported that approximately 3 inches of snow fell in portions of Allegan County in western Michigan.
By 6 a.m. EST Wednesday, snowfall totals in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan had climbed to around 10 inches in Ontonagon, Houghton and Gogebic Counties.
During Wednesday morning, a band of accumulating lake-effect snow swung northward and crossed the Buffalo, New York area, prior to reaching the Niagara Peninsula of Ontario and areas just west of Rochester, New York. The band of snow shifted back to the south of the city during Wednesday afternoon.
Winds high above the ground will be shifting direction throughout the event, limiting the potential for the same locations to get clobbered by heavy snow for hours or even days. Several feet of snow can pile up when winds blow from generally the same direction throughout a lake-effect snow event.
Forecasters warn that sudden, intense bursts of snow that drastically reduce visibility, known as snow squalls, can occur downwind of the lakes during the setup through midweek.
Snow squalls are notorious for triggering chain-reaction accidents on the highways, similar to what occurred along Interstate 80 in Iowa on Monday.
Related:
People with travel plans around the Great Lakes through midweek should keep in mind that their journey could become difficult and dangerous due to reduced visibility and snow-packed roads. Poor driving conditions are likely at times along stretches of I-75, I-81, I-86 and I-90.
Sneaky patch of snow to occur south of lake-effect
"In addition to lake-effect snow, a weak and moisture-starved storm scooted eastward across the northern parts of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio on Wednesday," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said.
Just enough snow fell to coat roads in these areas with a few spots picking up an inch to perhaps 2 inches of snow.
"The system is likely to survive the trip across a portion of Pennsylvania into Wednesday night, where a coating of snow has the potential to make some roads slippery," Sosnowski said.
What follows lake-effect and light snow?
Diminishing winds will cause the lake-effect snow showers and squalls to taper off across the region by Thursday morning, but AccuWeather meteorologists say the next snow threat will be knocking on the door.
A fast-moving storm system is expected to sweep from the northern Plains during late Wednesday and Wednesday night to the upper Great Lakes on Thursday. This clipper storm is forecast to bring a light to moderate snow accumulation along its path.
Many of the same areas that were whitened with a fresh snowfall at the beginning of the week are likely to another round of wintry weather with this system.
Download the free AccuWeather app to check the forecast in your area. Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo