Friday Nor'easter: It's Snow Time!

Just a few hours now until the first flakes will be a-flyin'. The radar would indicate that snow is practically on our doorstep, but the storm is running into a wall of cold air, which will keep the snow at bay for several more hours. NWS Albany is saying that snow will begin around 8 PM, but we won't be surprised if it starts an hour or so earlier.

The best news we can give right now is that a Winter Storm Warning is up for the entire county as well as Litchfield County in northwestern Connecticut. Why is the Litchfield County info important? It means that meteorologists think the cold air will be more firmly entrenched, which means a longer initial period of snow for this storm.

The basic contour of this storm is as thus: Snow tonight with some heavy bands after midnight. Possible changeover to rain in locations below 1000'. All snow still above 1000'. Toward the evening a return to all snow for even the valley locations, with an additional 2-4" expected by Saturday morning. We expect 4-8" on the western edge of the county and 8-12" on the east side. The highest locations in the county should see between 14-18" (Savoy, Hinsdale, Florida Mountain).

The two big factors that should give most students the full snow day are 1) the timing; 2) the threat of snow throughout the day on Friday. Even if there is a changeover to rain, it's going to be very hard for any rational Superintendent to send students out into the elements. Also, a sneaky third factor will be the wind. Gusts of up to 45 miles per hour will make for even more treacherous conditions during the day on Friday. 

From NWS Boston.

So, we are going to bump up the meter slightly to reflect the wind factor, which we had not considered yesterday or earlier in the week.

Besides the snow/rain changeover, the big question mark is will Superintendents make the call at the end of the school day, the early evening, or tomorrow morning.