Evening Update on the Winter Storm/Cold Outbreak

We have a Winter Storm WARNING for much of the area tonight through Sunday, however the warning has been dropped down to an advisory in Western Kentucky outside of the Mississippi River counties.

Although computer models have been edging our snowfall totals downward, I still think we'll get a decent snow for most of the area.  No doubt the higher totals will be north of the Ohio River though.  As for the Purchase Area and Northwest Tennessee, we're probably looking at 4 inches of snow or LESS, especially by the time we get to Murray and Calloway County where we might only see 1-2 inches. In fact, if we went strictly by the computer models, Paducah would get less than 2 inches!   In ALL areas though, there is the potential for some banding and bursts which could give us some localized areas with heavier snowfalls.

The storm should start coming together in our area early Sunday morning, with rain and then changing over to snow.  In the Purchase Area and NW Tennessee, during Sunday, we could see some freezing rain during the changeover, but it will NOT be a major freezing rain event.  It COULD make for very hazardous driving through as the temperatures drop to below freezing quickly.

After we go through the day Sunday, temperatures will be dropping like a rock, headed toward overnight lows from slightly below zero to the low single digits, with a wind chill reaching as low as 20 below....very dangerous temperatures!  Monday's high temperature will range from near zero to the single digits, and then Monday night's lows should be back around zero.  On Tuesday, we should start seeing the temperatures "warm" with high temperatures in the teens.  We may not get back above freezing until Wednesday or Thursday.  Along the way, we may see another round of wintry precipitation Wednesday into Thursday.  We're not expecting big amounts but it could cause problems before temperatures finally warm enough Thursday to force it to change over to all rain before ending.

In the meantime, prepare for the EXTREME COLD. This should be the coldest outbreak we've had in nearly 20 years.  Watch out for freezing pipes, dead car batteries, overworked heating units breaking, very high electricity demands.  Check on and take care of the elderly, the very young, pets, livestock. Use extreme caution outside because temperatures this cold and wind chills this low can lead to hypothermia and frostbite! BE Prepared!!!