Combination of heavy snow and gusty winds can create near-blizzard conditions just inland of the coast where all or mostly snow falls from the storm. Northern New Jersey and the lower Hudson Valley of New York state through much of Connecticut and northwestern Rhode Island is the most likely zone to experience blizzard and whiteout conditions.
AccuWeather Global Weather Center – December 16, 2020 – With the official start of winter just days away, Mother Nature began doling out a full-blown monster of a winter storm on Wednesday. Weather radar showed the storm taking shape Wednesday morning as AccuWeather meteorologists had predicted, with snow, ice and rain stretching from the Ohio Valley all the way down to the Southeast as the storm began taking aim at the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast.
As AccuWeather Chief Broadcast Meteorologist Bernie Rayno put it, “All the ingredients” had come together to bring a major nor’easter to a huge swath of the eastern United States.
The storm, however, is a fast-moving one and though it’s poised to bring snowfall rates of 1 to 3 inches per hour at its peak, that quick forward speed will prevent the system from turning into an all-out “snowmaggedon,” AccuWeather forecasters said. But make no mistake, the team cautioned, this will be a big storm that will bring whiteout and blizzard conditions to some places and result in power outages where the storm hits hardest.
The National Weather Service issued winter storm watches and warnings Tuesday across numerous states spanning from North Carolina to Maine ahead of the storm. More snow is anticipated from the developing nor’easter than from all of the storms last winter combined in Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and New York City.
Precipitation was starting out as snow and a wintry mix across parts of Virginia, causing treacherous conditions on roads there. Similarly, precipitation will start out as snow in Baltimore and Washington, D.C., but a change over to a wintry mix and then all rain will limit total accumulations. The nation’s capital is looking at accumulations of 1 to 2 inches, and Baltimore is expected to pick up 2 to 4 inches.
Mixing will also cut down on snow totals in Philadelphia, but the City of Brotherly Love could be buried under 4 to 8 inches of snow when the storm is done. That’s more than the city saw during all of last winter when only 0.3 of an inch of snow fell during the entire season.
It will be a close call in New York City too, where the snow is forecast to pile up to a depth of 10 to 15 inches. If snow changes over to sleet and a bit of rain sooner than anticipated, then the storm total will end up under 10 inches. But, if little to no mixing occurs in the Big Apple, snowfall can top 15 inches.
Harrisburg, Allentown, and Scranton, Pennsylvania, are all likely to pick up a foot or more of snow.
Precipitation in Boston is expected to remain in the form of snow, with totals around a foot. Areas southeast of Boston will face some mixing, and snowfall totals are expected to be in the 10- to 15-inch range.
Forecasters are warning that the storm will hit hard and fast with major disruptions to travel and even travel shutdowns, as well as shipping delays, school closings and power outages from this blockbuster storm. Even where some students and people are working from home during the storm, power outages could throw a big wrench into that plan. Some areas may not only pick up the heaviest snowfall in several years, but this snow could also rival December snowfall records.
A broad swath of 12-18 inches of snow is projected to fall from northwestern Virginia and northeastern West Virginia to part of northern Maryland, central and eastern Pennsylvania, northern New Jersey, southeastern New York state and southern New England. Within this area, some places can pick up a 24-inch snowfall amount with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 30 inches.
Snowfall of this magnitude will shut down travel and lead to major delays of shipments at a time when a critical distribution of COVID-19 vaccines has begun.
Intense snowfall rates will cause snow to rapidly pile up on roads, raising the risk of highway shutdowns and stranded motorists. AccuWeather meteorologists are strongly urging motorists to be off the roads by the time the first flakes of snow start to fall. This will allow snow removal crews to be most efficient.
