Mid-South Meteorology: Weekend Winter Storm UPDATE

A Winter Storm Watch has been issued for the entire region, beginning Sunday morning and continuing through noon on Monday! The biggest concerns are accumulations of ice! (If you'd like to receive our weather updates via email, send an email to weather@61south.com with the word Subscribe)

While we're expecting some rain possible tonight, there shouldn't be a problem with winter weather. In fact, Saturday, we could see high temperatures in the mid 50s before the troublesome system approaches Saturday night.

Saturday night, after midnight, we could see rain began mixing with sleet and freezing rain heading into Sunday morning. The big question is what will the temperatures do Sunday. Some models show the freezing line making it's way south of the Ohio River by Sunday morning, while others hold it off until around noon. At that point, we'll be more susceptible to mixing with freezing rain and sleet.

Model showing the 32 degree (freezing) line reaching the Ohio River by 6AM Sunday morning. Another holds it off until around noon.

The bulk of the precipitation with this storm is expected to fall Sunday PM and night into early Monday, and the total precipitation for this weekend into Monday could be between 1 and 2 inches. Some of that will be regular rain, some will be sleet, some will be freezing rain, and some will be snow. The biggest threat will be freezing rain and the possible ice accumulations which come along with it. Once we top a quarter inch of ice, we start to see problems with downed trees and power lines, which leads to power outages. Right now, there is a 40-50% chance our region gets at LEAST to the quarter inch mark, and a decent chance many of us will see MORE, if the current forecast verifies. (For a frame of reference, in the 2009 ice storm, we received 1-2" of ICE, so what we're predicting for this one is nowhere near that!)

Courtesy: NWS Paducah

Overnight Sunday into Monday morning, we'll see a changeover to snow, but the accumulations should be minimal for most of the area. One model is showing about 3 or 4 inches or less. Another model is showing virtually NO accumulation. Now, if you're planning on traveling north from our region Monday, you could be looking at some big problems with heavy snowfalls.

Courtesy: NWS Paducah

This model shows 3 or 4 inches possible, especially north of the Ohio River, and 3 inches or less south of the Ohio. Even this one shows little if any for the KenTenn. Another model, however, shows virtually NO snow for any of us.

After the snow stops, the COLD will remain, with arctic air bringing us COLD temperatures with lows in the teens Monday and Tuesday night and highs in the 20s. Highs return to the 40s Wednesday and the 50s by Friday.

Stay with us for the latest information and forecast updates on this system! Remember, when the power's out, you can still hear our forecasts and live reports on Newstalk 94.7, 95.5, 570AM and 1320AM, along with The Mix 94.7 and Willie 102.1.