The National Weather Service has updated the Winter Storm Warning they issued earlier this afternoon, which started as a watch.
I’ll also add this, for what it’s worth. It seems that blizzard warning area keeps getting larger and is perhaps moving this way?
URGENT – WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA
943 PM EST MON JAN 31 2011…POWERFUL WINTER STORM TO AFFECT THE REGION…
.AN INTENSE WINTER STORM WILL MOVE THROUGH THE AREA IN TWO PHASES BEGINNING TONIGHT AND ENDING WEDNESDAY EVENING WITH A LULL TUESDAY MORNING. SNOW ACROSS THE AREA THIS EVENING WILL MIX WITH SLEET…PRIMARILY ALONG AND SOUTH OF A MONTICELLO TO ROCHESTER TO FORT WAYNE TO DEFIANCE LINE. FURTHER SOUTH A PERIOD OF FREEZING RAIN AND SLEET OVERNIGHT IS EXPECTED…MAINLY SOUTH OF HIGHWAY 24. SNOW ACCUMULATIONS TONIGHT WILL BE GENERALLY 2 TO 5 INCHES…WITH LESSER AMOUNTS WHERE THE WINTRY MIX OCCURS. WINDS WILL INCREASE EARLY TUESDAY WITH BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW…ALTHOUGH THERE WILL LIKELY BE A LULL WITH THE FALLING SNOW TUESDAY MORNING INTO EARLY TUESDAY AFTERNOON.
HEAVY SNOW WITH SIGNIFICANT BLOWING AND DRIFTING IS LIKELY BY LATE TUESDAY AFTERNOON. VERY HEAVY SNOW WILL CONTINUE TUESDAY NIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY MORNING…ENDING BY WEDNESDAY EVENING. SNOWFALL RATES OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR ARE EXPECTED TUESDAY NIGHT. SNOW MAY MIX WITH OR CHANGE TO SLEET OR FREEZING RAIN SOUTH OF ROUTE 24…WITH SIGNIFICANT ICING POSSIBLE. ICE ACCUMULATIONS WILL LIKELY BE BETWEEN ONE QUARTER AND ONE HALF INCH…WITH HIGHEST ICING POTENTIAL NEAR AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM MARION INDIANA TO OTTAWA OHIO. SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OF UP TO 18 INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS SYSTEM…WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS OF OVER 20 INCHES NOT OUT OF THE REALM OF POSSIBILITY. THESE HIGHER SNOWFALL AMOUNTS WILL BE ACROSS FAR NORTHERN INDIANA AND SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN.
SUSTAINED WINDS OF 15 TO 30 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS…WILL CREATE WIDESPREAD BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW…WITH DRIFTS POTENTIALLY REACHING SEVERAL FEET IN SOME LOCATIONS. BLIZZARD TO NEAR BLIZZARD CONDITIONS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE IN MANY AREAS…ESPECIALLY ACROSS NORTHWESTERN INDIANA AND SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN. VISIBILITIES WILL BE DOWN TO ZERO AT TIMES TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY MORNING. TRAVEL WILL LIKELY BE DIFFICULT TO IMPOSSIBLE IN MANY AREAS…WITH ROAD CLOSURES POSSIBLE.
LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR LOCAL MEDIA FOR UPDATES ON THIS DANGEROUS WINTER STORM…ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE PLANNING TRAVEL IN THE REGION.
[…] …WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST WEDNESDAY…
A WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST WEDNESDAY.
* TIMING…A WINTRY MIX OF PRECIPITATION WILL CONTINUE OVERNIGHT…CHANGING TO ALL SNOW BY DAYBREAK. AFTER A SHORT LULL IN THE SNOW TUESDAY MORNING…THE SNOW WILL EXPAND IN COVERAGE AND INTENSITY LATE TUESDAY. SNOW MAY MIX WITH OR CHANGE TO FREEZING RAIN AND SLEET LATE TUESDAY NIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY MORNING. SNOW WILL CONTINUE INTO WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON…ENDING WEDNESDAY EVENING.
* MAIN IMPACT…1 TO 3 INCHES OF SNOW WILL BE POSSIBLE BY TUESDAY MORNING. ADDITIONAL HEAVY SNOW AND SLEET ACCUMULATIONS OF 4 TO 8 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY. IF PRECIPITATION CHANGES TO FREEZING RAIN OR SLEET…MUCH LOWER SNOWFALL AMOUNTS WOULD BE EXPECTED BUT SIGNIFICANT ICING WOULD BE POSSIBLE WITH EXTENDED POWER OUTAGES. ONE QUARTER TO ONE HALF INCH OF ICE ACCUMULATION IS POSSIBLE.
* OTHER IMPACTS…SUSTAINED WINDS OF 15 TO 30 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS WOULD SUPPORT WIDESPREAD BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW… HIGHLY IMPACTING TRAVEL. THESE WINDS WOULD ALSO CAUSE TREE LIMBS AND POWER LINES TO FALL IF SIGNIFICANT ICING OCCURS.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW… SLEET…AND ICE ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. STRONG WINDS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE. THIS WILL MAKE TRAVEL VERY HAZARDOUS OR IMPOSSIBLE.