ROANOKE, Va. – Monday Afternoon Update
Our Weather Authority Alert Day has been cleared. Be sure to download our free 10 News weather app to receive updates throughout the day on the forecast.
Monday Morning Update
There are a number of school delays Monday morning, thanks to a brief burst of snow that happened overnight.
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Snow will be confined to the west-facing slopes through midday Monday. Aside from that, the wind stays gusting between 25 and 35 mph.
Highs reach the 30s and 40s, leading to improving road conditions in the mountains. Overnight lows bottom out in the upper teens and low-to-mid 20s.
Our Weather Authority Alert Day will expire at noon on Monday.
Sunday Afternoon Update
Our cold front continues to press east Sunday afternoon. The system used extra energy in North Carolina to develop storms which even prompted a Tornado Warning. Rainfall rates drop as Sunday continues.
As the rain eases off cold temperatures combine with available moisture to bring snow into our northern edges. That snow is light for most, but some accumulations of more than an inch are possible.
Snow is barely falling in our region after sunset, and rainfall rates in Southside are lower than they were in the mid-afternoon. The main storm risk drops after 4:00 PM.
Colder temperatures spread the snowfall further east as the night goes on. Blacksburg sees snow by 10:00 PM with a mix near Lexington.
Precipitation in general dries out after midnight, but some snow continues to fall. With surface temperatures falling below the freezing point the leftover moisture from Sunday will begin to freeze and make for poor road conditions.
Light snow falls in the northern Highlands around sunrise with dry weather by noon.
Snow accumulations are highest near Snowshoe with more than an inch possible on northern slopes in the NRV and Nelson County. Some snow in high elevations in both Floyd and Grayson Counties could reach more than half an inch.
We have a Winter Storm Warning in northern Pocahontas and Nelson Counties for the snow that builds overnight. These are where some of our highest accumulations develop. The Winter Weather Advisory in Grayson, Highland, and Greenbrier Counties show spots where snow might not reach an inch but is still enough to impact your day.
Whether it’s snow or cold temperatures most of us have poor road conditions early on Monday. Be careful of ice as you get back on the roads or even walking to your car. Warmer temperatures and consistent sun through Monday will help melt most of what falls, and our weather stays calm through the week.
Sunday Morning Update
A Weather Authority Alert Day is up for all of Sunday and extends until 12 p.m. Monday.
A couple of heavy showers and thunderstorms have the potential to grow and impact the areas highlighted above in green this afternoon. There is a low, non-zero risk or seeing a tornado this afternoon as winds pick up. If any storms do go severe, Your Local Weather Authority will be tracking them out for you.
Widespread showers will persist through most of the day. By 4:00 PM, we start to see some deep pockets of heavy rainfall move through Southside, this is about the time the severe threat kicks in.
By 7:00 PM we are seeing big time rain close to Lynchburg and Southside. A couple of these storms could clip our eastern zones. On the other hand, snow showers start to move in for the western slopes.
Rainfall estimates could be as high as 1-2 inches for all counties today. Some spots will likely see even more than that as totals have the potential to be upwards of 3 inches.
Temperatures will be declining in the afternoon hours. Once the rain dies down and becomes lighter, cold air behind the cold front wastes no time moving in. This will allow for some of us to see flurries and light snow accumulation.
The overnight hours will allow for snow showers to get as far east as the Roanoke Valley and the parkway. The ground will still be wet and warm from showers earlier in the day, so snow accumulation that far east will be hard and is not expected at this time.
Areas highlighted in grey and yellow have the best chance of seeing flurries accumulate along the ground, or seeing a light dusting on vegetation. Totals could near 1-3 inches in some spots, especially along the mountains and high elevations.
There is also the potential for ice to stick on roadways in high elevations for the Monday morning commute. Above freezing temperatures return by noon for these areas.
Saturday Afternoon Update
The Weather Authority Alert Day has been extended through Monday, Dec. 11 at 12 p.m.
Saturday’s clouds precede rainfall through Sunday with some snow late Sunday into Monday morning.
See an update from Meteorologist Marshall Downing below.
Showers begin late on Saturday and continue through Sunday. Most rainfall rates are light through the morning.
Rain continues through the afternoon with some heavy rates and even rumbles of thunder. After 5:00 PM colder air starts making snow on our northern and western edges.
Showers continue in the east through midnight. Some snow falls closer to I-81, but warmer temperatures mean it’s hard for that snow to stick.
Only a little accumulation is left by Monday morning. We dry out in the afternoon, but with cold air and plenty of moisture on Monday morning some ice could create poor road conditions.
Rain totals across our region are high. Most of us get more than an inch of rain, but few locations get more than two inches.
Since so much rain comes in a short amount of time flooding is possible in some areas. The main flood risk stays well to our north in New England.
Snow builds up in the Highlands and NRV. An inch or more of snow can build on western slopes in the Highlands. Further south it’s harder for that much snow to stick at this point in the season.
There are not many winter weather alerts as of Saturday afternoon. A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect in Pocahontas County for snow accumulations of multiple inches around Snowshoe.
Saturday Morning Update
Light rain is expected to move through Southwest Virginia today. Rain totals near a tenth of an inch for those who see a shower or two.
The severe storm threat expands from the Mississippi Valley to the Tennessee Valley today. Parts of the NRV are included in this and could see a storm with heavy rain later on. Tomorrow, the threat pushes east and includes Southside. Similarly, the threat is the possibility of seeing a strong storm with heavy rain.
There is no doubt Sunday will be wet and feature plenty of rain. Rainfall estimates near 1-2 inches for all zones. A few spots could see upwards of that amount.
After the rain moves through, there is potential to see snow showers after sunset and through the overnight. Most of these will be light and will have a hard time sticking and accumulating on the ground because of the soaking rain and warmer temperatures that came before.
Winter weather impacts are limited across the NRV, Highlands, and Roanoke Valley. To stay up to date on all things weather, download our weather app.
Our next cold front brings showers late on Saturday that continue into heavy rain through Sunday with some snow possible Sunday night. We all could use rain to help our dry conditions, but high amounts come down in a relatively short amount of time.
Showers begin after sunset on Saturday leading to widespread rainfall by Sunday morning. Showers are relatively light in the early hours of the day with some moderate rainfall rates along and south of US-460.
In the afternoon, rainfall rates pick up. While the heaviest rain stays closer to Richmond, both Southside and Lynchburg get some impressive accumulations in just a few hours.
While rain is consistent through the east some snow begins to fall in West Virginia as temperatures fall. It takes a few more hours for that snow to reach our western slopes.
By 10 p.m., temperatures are cold enough for snow in the Highlands and NRV. Most of the system is done by Monday morning.
Snow accumulations are generally light, and with most ground temperatures above freezing, it will be hard for it to stick around. Western slopes could see more than an inch of snow with less as you get closer to I-81.
Once the front passes, wind gusts pick up with some reaching 30 miles per hour. This follows a pattern we saw with other fronts this season. Winds ease off in the afternoon and are largely calm by Tuesday.
After the front moves through, we have calm weather through the middle of the week.
Check out this article and video to see how much snow we can expect this winter.