ST. LOUIS — The Christmas blizzard may be over, but the storm system that brought several inches of snow, an inch of freezing rain accretion and near hurricane-force winds to the Plains earlier this week is straggling on in the form of light snow for the mid-Mississippi Valley.
Areas around eastern Missouri and south-central Illinois are getting a remnant dose of minor snow on Thursday.
That includes St. Louis, which had light snow showers already blowing through since Wednesday night, making for a “picturesque night” at the National Weather Service office.
The official gauge at Lambert Airport in St. Louis reported its first measurable snowfall of the season, with 0.2 inches late Wednesday through midnight Thursday morning.
A break in the snow comes late Thursday morning into midday, but a renewed round of snow showers will likely push through the region later Thursday afternoon through the evening commute and into the night.
Snowfall amounts are forecast to be light, with an inch or less accumulations — mainly on elevated and grassy surfaces.
Some snow winners may get up to 1.5 inches in a heavier burst of snow, but the NWS estimates any travel impacts on the St. Louis area Thursday evening at just 20%.
The dose of winter weather will slide off into the Southeast Friday, bringing a late-year chill there, but a return to dry weather around the mid-Mississippi Valley with seasonal temperatures.