The storm gathering strength over the eastern Pacific Ocean is expected to sweep across the United States and hit the eastern seaboard on Friday and Saturday, said Rich Otto, a National Weather Service meteorologist.
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As much as 2 feet of snow is possible in Virginia and extending from Washington, D.C.to NY and Boston, the weather service and local forecasters said.
In Washington, Mayor Muriel Bowser tweeted that more than 2,000 residents have joined the city’s Resident Snow Team to help elderly and disabled neighbors shovel out after the storm. The strongest winds and potentially life-threatening conditions are expected Friday night through Saturday night.
Snow and drizzle began falling early Wednesday across much of Kentucky and Tennessee leading school districts and some universities to cancel classes and officials to warn motorists to drive carefully.
A few times this week we’ve seen a Winter Weather Advisory issued for some part of NW Arkansas or the River Valley.
Tens of millions of East Coast residents could be affected by the storm system, which will be ushered by ice. Forecasters say travel will be hard, if not impossible, during the storm on Friday.
“We’ve got the snow tires ready to go if we need to put them on the cars”, Sims said.
FRIDAY FORECAST: Areas north of Elizabethtown and Burgaw may “try” to hold onto icy precipitation early, but overall, plain rain is most likely.
These areas can expect sleet and light snow until noon.
Traffic is bumper to bumper and mostly at a stand-still on the outer loop of the I-495 Capital Beltway after snow fell Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, in National Harbor, Md.
Meteorologist Matthew Belk of the National Weather Service in Taunton said a small shift in the track of the storm would make a big difference for the region, which is on the cusp of its forecast path. He used Interstate 90 as a marker.
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“They know (the storm is) coming”, Roy Washington said. An inch or two is possible. A swath of Arkansas beginning in Little Rock and heading northeast to Jonesboro could receive between 4 to 6 inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service.
