Winter Ain't Done Yet -- More Snow Coming

The big blizzard of '26 generally spared the Berkshires yesterday. The storm ended up tracking more to the east and did not quite produce the snow and wind gusts that were forecasted. Still, driving conditions were pretty rough around the times the busses would have rolled, so all in all the right call by Superintendents. And the Commonwealth was in a state of emergency, as called by Gov. Healey, so that also sealed the deal.

About this time of year is when a few Negative Nicks and Nellies start to root against snow storms. It's fine if you're in that camp, and, yes, school children might be in session until July, but your bad juju is not welcome here. Live the snow day, love the snow day. Always.

So, we have a sneaky little situation developing for Wednesday morning. An Alberta Clipper will be zooming into our region around 4 AM. Even though models are showing only 1-3", the timing of this storm is screaming "two-hour delays."

NWS Albany. More than enough for a delay.

Superintendents probably have "had it up to here" with the snow, but the snow-covered roads for the morning commute might lead a few school leaders to delay the start tomorrow.

Next up is a mid-Atlantic disturbance that could throw an inch or two our way Thursday night. That scenario is less certain but might add to our seasonal snow totals. The school day will not be impacted by that event.

Lastly, the GSD Staff eyebrows are raised for a potential big storm next week (Tuesday/Wednesday). Both the Euro and North American are showing 8-12 inches of snow. By no means is this storm a certainty--yesterday's storm was a very late developer--but the agreement between the models is definitely intriguing. We will definitely be monitoring this situation and look forward to tracking it over the next week.

The Euro's forecast for Tuesday, March 3. Another coastal storm.

Cancellations for Monday, Feb. 23

Some of the short-range models have predicted a slight easterly shift to the center of the storm, which could knock a few inches off our expected snow totals. But this is still a serious snow that will produce 6-12" of snow and 40+ mph winds on Monday.

To no one's surprise, school districts and colleges are calling in the snow day already. It's going to be a clean sweep. Here is our list so far. [Updated 10:00 PM, Sunday]

Snow Days:

Bement School

Berkshire Arts and Technology

Berkshire Community College

Berkshire Country Day

Berkshire Hills

Berkshire Montessori

Berkshire Waldorf

Central Berkshire
Emma Miller

Farmington River

Hancock
Hoosac Valley

Lee

Lenox

MCLA
Mount Greylock

North Adams

Pine Cobble

Pittsfield

Richmond Consolidated

Southern Berkshire

Williams College (admin offices; non-essential personnel; children's center)

The Vacation Extender: Nor'easter of Feb. 22/23

There has been little change to the forecast overnight, which means a big storm will be hitting the Berkshires. 

NWS Boston

Although we won't be in the jackpot zone--those honors go to southeastern New England--we still are expected to see 8-12". By our calculations, that is more than enough to cancel school on Monday.

The three big factors working in our favor: 1) Moderate and high snow totals; 2) Perfect timing; 3) High winds on Monday.

The snow is expected to start between 8 and 11 PM. It will snow first in South County and then gradually push northward. We may see a few flakes and even a light accumulation during the day today, but that is just bonus snow before the coastal storm really starts to intensify later in the day.

Meteorologists are expecting the heaviest snow to fall in the early hours of Monday, with rates of 1-2" per hour possible. It will definitely be snowing in the "golden hour" (4-5 AM) when Superintendents rise and determine the fates of hundreds of students and their families (at least for that day).

As we noted yesterday, we can not underestimate the wind with this storm and how difficult visibility is going to be Monday morning. Sustained 20 mph winds with gusts into the 40s will lead to white out conditions. There aren't too many bus companies that are going to willingly put their drivers out there in white out conditions.

NWS Albany

One factor that might work against some students is a sharp snow cut-off line on the northern edge of the storm. This cut-off line is currently forecasted to be in Vermont, but a slightly more southerly track could bring that cut-off line into Northern Berkshire county. South County schools will still be safe and well below that dreaded line.

At this juncture the GSD Staff is much more optimistic about this storm and its potential to extend public school students' vacations one more day. In fact, we expect several Superintendents to make their decision tonight.

The Staff will be monitoring things all day, and we'll do one more report in the late afternoon. Get the high snow boots out and have the shovels ready!