A storm system tracking through California and the Sierra Nevada this weekend will be the first winter storm of 2023 for parts of the Plains and Midwest, and it could produce several inches of snow and significant ice accretion.
An atmospheric river event from the moisture-laden Pacific has already led to heavy rain and snow for the Golden State and points eastward, and this pattern is expected to continue through New Year’s Day.
Flash Flood Watches and a host of winter weather alerts stretch from California through the Rockies, where more than two feet of snow is likely in the higher elevations.
The snowpack, combined with the new precipitation, has caused authorities to warn about avalanche dangers through the weekend.
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The New Year’s holiday impacts will only be the first part of a multi-day event as the system intensifies and moves eastward.
The FOX Forecast Center expects snow to develop and spread over the Northern Plains Monday and impact the Upper Midwest on Tuesday.
Forecast models suggest that most areas from Nebraska through northern Michigan will see less than half a foot of snow, but localized spots to the north and west of the system’s center could pick on more than 8 inches.
In addition to the snow, ice accretion could be significant in parts of Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin and Winter Storm Watches have already started to be issued by National Weather Service offices in those areas.
“I’m more worried about ice than snow any day, especially for this part of the country that’s used to the snow,” said FOX Weather meteorologist Kelly Costa.
The most likely region for ice impacts would be from Omaha, Nebraska, through southern Minnesota, where some areas could see upwards of a quarter-inch, leading to some downed trees and power outages.
For those who see snow, it won’t be all fun and games, even though snowfall forecasts are not record-breaking for this part of the country.
“The closer you are to that freezing level, the more moisture is going to be in the snowflake,” Costa said. “Unfortunately, that makes for a very wet and heavy snow, which is so much more difficult and taxing on the body to have to clean up.”
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The southern end of the storm system is expected to produce a multi-day severe event from the Southern Plains through the Tennessee Valley.
Most of the precipitation is expected to exit the Eastern Seaboard by the end of the first week of 2023.