Snowy Saturday (Jan. 17)

It appears everyone in Berkshire County will be waking on Saturday to a fresh blanket of snow. NWS Albany has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for the Berkshires that begins Friday night. The snow prediction range is a ludicrous 2 to 9 inches. That really narrows it down!

Whether you get 2 inches (most likely South County) or 9 inches (most likely Prospect Mountain in Southern Vermont), the snow will start after midnight and continue into the early afternoon. It's going to stay under freezing for the next 10 days so there is no chance of seeing a changeover with this storm. (Looking at the long-range forecast, we are headed for a long and deep cold stretch. Sunday will be the last day we see 30 degrees. Highs on Tuesday will be in the low teens.) 

The short range model (NAM) showing a moderate snow fall for Saturday.

Our prediction is for 3-5" for the County with high end totals north of Pittsfield, and lower totals from Pittsfield and south. There should be enough snow for sledding and possible snow fort/snow people creation if the temps can get close to 30. Roads will be slow-going most of Saturday. Postponement of games and activities is certainly possible for anything scheduled for Saturday morning.

As for future storms that might actually impact the length of the school day, we have our eye on a storm for the end of next week (week of Jan. 20). The Euro is showing a moderate snow storm, but the North American model takes the snow to our north. It definitely will be cold enough for snow next week.

Enjoy the snow and have a great long weekend if you have the day off on Monday!

Delays Possible Thursday, Jan. 15

There has not been too much movement in the forecast for Thursday. A potential nor'easter is now headed out to sea, so all we're left with is a rain to snow event that starts this afternoon and through the morning commute tomorrow.

The big question mark is when the rain will transition to snow. It's going to be warm today (low 40s), which means it's going to take a while for the temps to get low enough for Snow. If the rain-to-snow transition occurs early enough (between 4 and 5 AM), we could see delays. The snow forecast only ranges from 0.5" to 2" so there's not much to work with, but if the timing is right, conditions will be ripe for a few delays, especially in Northern Berkshire County.

A meager amount of snow is predicted. The timing will need to be perfect for delays.

At this point we're going to go low on the Confidence Meter. North Adams, Hoosac Valley, Mount Greylock, and the mountain elementary schools all have a better chance for delays than students in Pittsfield and southward.

Should developments warrant it, we'll communicate any new information later this evening.

Potential for Snow on Thursday (Jan. 14)

 The milder temperatures that we saw this past weekend will stick around for a few more days until a complex system moves into our area Wednesday night. This system--actually, multiple systems--will impact our weather through Friday.

In simplest terms we are eying snow for Thursday into Thursday night. Right now meteorologists are looking at the 7 AM Thursday to 7 AM Friday for a period of snow. The North American model is coming in a little stronger with 2-3 inches predicted, and the Euro is only showing 1-2 inches. Either way, there is general agreement that we will have a plowable but minor snowfall.

The North American model (GFS) for Thursday's snow.

The timing is not great. It's forecasted to start a little later than we would like. Also, the storm may track out to sea. And given the generous snow day that we received last week, Superintendents may be less willing to call a full snow day based on a 1-3" forecast.

What we need to see happen is the forecast to move into the 3-5" range, then we will see some snow days for students of Berkshire County. 

As always, the GSD Staff will be monitoring the situation around the clock and updating daily.