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Winter storm latest: What we'll get, when we'll get it
For several days, Pittsburgh area residents have been told that severe winter weather is heading to the area for Christmas weekend. The burning question has been exactly when will it hit and how bad will it be?
According to the National Weather Service in Moon, a cold front will move in from the Midwest late Thursday evening with the worst of it hitting by early Friday morning around 4 or 5 a.m., creating hazardous travel. NWS forecasters are issuing a high wind advisory and wind chill warning with the potential for temperatures to drop down to minus-25 degrees.
“The combination of wind and very cold arctic air mass is creating that,” NWS meteorologist Shannon Hefferan said of the temperatures. “Those gusts can be over 40 miles per hour and maybe as high as 50.”
Up to 2 inches of snow is expected to come in on the back side of the front, and the NWS is issuing a winter weather advisory for Friday for the early morning commute and into the afternoon for flash-freeze potential. So, the rain that’s falling today, with the extreme cold temperatures, could create some icy conditions on the roads.
Hopefully by now, you're aware there is an arctic cold front coming early Fri AM. The image depicts the timeframe for when you can expect a changeover from rain to snow as that front crosses. This is also when you should anticipate potential for flash freeze concerns to start. pic.twitter.com/oQZxxrKeAQ— NWS Pittsburgh (@NWSPittsburgh) December 22, 2022
“We could get a quick burst of snow as that arctic air mass moves in. It’s not a lot of snow like a regular winter storm, but it could be very impactful for travel. There’s the potential of seeing a half-inch (of snow) in an hour when that frontal boundary comes through,” Hefferan said. “The low-pressure system could really get some ice crystals moving throughout the air column and dump a lot of snow in a quick amount of time.”
Hefferan urged people not to make the mistake of thinking the weather is only going to be bad during Friday morning, because there could be lingering effects throughout the afternoon.
Roads conditions will depend on how fast crews can treat the icy conditions.
“They’re probably not going to throw salt on the roads right now because it will just wash away,” Hefferan said. “It will take some time for everybody to feel comfortable enough to go out and about because that cold air mass continues all the way through Christmas Day. There will be hazardous travel Friday, and it could go all the way into the evening commute, unfortunately.
“Everybody just needs to be patient, because it’s an interesting system.”
Hefferan said she expects to see an improvement as early as the day after Christmas with rising temperatures and highs reaching the 40s by next Wednesday.
“We’re expected to get some relief in the coming days, and it will be like it never happened,” she said.
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