Massive winter storm to bring snow and ice from Texas to Northeast

AccuWeather

AccuWeather's Jon Porter urges people to prepare for a massive winter storm that is expected to bring heavy snow and freezing rain from the Plains to the Northeast, which will lead to power outages.

Transcript

00:00Huge problems, and you know, John, you and I have known each other for a long time.

00:04Shortly after we graduated, I worked in Joplin, Missouri.

00:06It was unnerving to forecast winter storms there because compared to the northeast,

00:10you can watch them come in from multiple states.

00:12They just develop over your head there in parts of the southern plains.

00:16Yeah, that one's going to be developed.

00:17This one's going to be developing right in that corridor,

00:19and AccuWeather snow and ice experts have been following every detail of this storm,

00:23and we're concerned that this is going to be a major storm

00:27that's going to effectively shut down travel over large sections of the southern

00:32and eventually eastern part of the United States for days on end here

00:36because we're talking about significant snow and ice, Jeff,

00:39in places that are especially unaccustomed for it

00:41and may not have the snow removal or ice removal equipment there.

00:45So big challenges here on the way.

00:47And as this Arctic front silently pushes through places like Omaha,

00:52it gets to a point where we begin to see that interact with some gulf moisture

00:56and other factors from the southwestern part of the map.

00:59How's this all come together?

01:01Yeah, that's the big issue.

01:01You've got this press of Arctic air here from the north.

01:04At the same time, gulf moisture and Pacific moisture will be entrained

01:09into this developing storm system.

01:11And watch as we put the AccuWeather Futurecast into motion.

01:14Watch how the ice in the pink blossoms here across north Texas.

01:18Snow, Amarillo, northbound in Texas across portions of Oklahoma

01:22and into Arkansas, as you mentioned.

01:24And so we're going to be dealing with a big mess here from a travel perspective

01:27across the south-central part of the country as we head into the weekend.

01:33And we have huge impacts.

01:34It's difficult to really summarize this from the varied impacts

01:38that this will bring to so many different states.

01:40This is, and we need people to prepare in the path of this storm

01:44because some of the power outages that are going to occur may last days to a week or more.

01:50And with such cold weather, that brings big concerns about people being able to sustain heat.

01:56So be prepared in the hardest-hit areas for the risk for power outages that could last days.

02:02And that becomes, also be careful with generators and make sure you use those safely

02:06in some of these hard-hit areas and have plenty of perishable food and water

02:10and prescriptions and things of that nature

02:12because 150 million people on the path of the storm,

02:16we're talking about the risk for as long-lasting power outages.

02:20And there may be hundreds of thousands or perhaps a million or more people without power

02:26during the height of the storm over a multi-state area.

02:29Heavy snow, freezing rain, and the record cold to follow

02:33makes the cleanup even more challenging.

02:36And, Jeff, there's going to be a time, we think, where major east-west interstates across the south,

02:41that's Interstate 20, parts of 30, parts of Interstate 40, may be closed at the same time.

02:47It's going to be difficult to get anywhere across the hardest-hit areas.

02:51And you mentioned I-40.

02:52I-40 might be right in the middle of the heavy snow zone for the first part of the storm.

02:56It may be.

02:57And we mentioned these interstates because they're major thoroughfares where many people travel.

03:01They're also critical for commerce.

03:04Many trucking entities are using those.

03:07And, of course, also package deliveries and things of that nature.

03:10So big interruptions here into daily, everyday life.

03:14That's going to be a theme here over several days with this storm.

03:18And look at the snow to the north here across parts of Oklahoma, including Oklahoma City,

03:22toward the area into the Ozarks where there will be 6 to 12 inches of snow

03:26and several inches of snow to the north of that toward Kansas City.

03:30And this is just getting started.

03:32And the area is just south of here.

03:33We have even greater concerns about the impact of that ice.

03:37That's right.

03:37And this is where we're talking about freezing rain.

03:39Now, sleet and freezing rain are both going to be challenges here.

03:43Sleet is the type of ice pellets that pings off your window, right?

03:46That accumulates almost like snow.

03:49Now, that still creates a big challenge, but the big problem is freezing rain.

03:54And freezing rain is rain that freezes on contact of colder surfaces.

03:59And that's where you get an ice buildup on trees, power lines, and roads.

04:03And look at this.

04:04We're talking about a significant risk here of severe icing across parts of north and central Texas

04:10all the way through portions of Arkansas, northern Louisiana, northern Mississippi, northern Alabama,

04:17toward the Atlanta area, right up into portions of the Carolinas.

04:20This is going to be the epicenter, we think, for the multi-day power outages

04:24and areas where we're very concerned that there can be many people without power

04:29as a result of that freezing rain and very serious travel problems, of course, as well.

04:34And notice Dallas-Fort Worth and Atlanta both in this.

04:37Those are major airports, which is why we're talking about the risk

04:41for 4,000 or more flight cancellations this weekend

04:45as impacts in those major airport terminals can spread across the country.

04:50And that map takes us to Saturday night.

04:52That's around the time that the northeast really gets into some heavy snow in many areas.

04:57That's right.

04:57It looks like the storm is going to pull toward the east coast

05:00and then move near or just offshore heavy snow across the big cities along the I-95 corridor.

05:07There can be some mixing all the way up into portions of Virginia,

05:12maybe even close to the D.C. area, but there's going to be a big storm here

05:15across the mid-Atlantic up into parts of the northeast.

05:18Here's the risk for three inches or more of snow.

05:21The purples here, 80 to 100 percent chance for that.

05:25Look at, we're confident of three or more inches of snow

05:27across the big cities that we mentioned in those areas.

05:30It's focused on the mid-Atlantic and the risk for six or more inches of snow high in these areas.

05:36And you can see the area that we think the greatest snow will be across portions of the mid-Atlantic

05:40up toward New York City on this one as well.

05:43And then briefly, John, just kind of as we wrap this up,

05:45the volume of power outages may be so significant that the outages continue for a long time.

05:50It's a big problem with the cold setting in.

05:52It is, and we're concerned in Texas that is especially vulnerable,

05:56the power grid in Texas, to extreme cold.

05:59In fact, this may be the greatest test of the electric system in Texas

06:05since the significant extreme cold wave of February 2021.

06:10Now, it's not the same setup.

06:12This cold will not be as persistent, and it will not be as intense,

06:16but this one is accompanied by a major snow and ice storm,

06:20so that's going to drive the demand for extra heating significantly across Texas.

06:28And it will be a test of all the weatherization that has been put into place

06:32after the February 2021 event.

06:35So people in Texas need to be watching this very closely

06:37and certainly be prepared for the risk for power outages or curtailments that may be needed

06:43as a result of a major snow and ice storm and an extreme cold wave here over several days.

06:50All right, John.

06:51And just big picture, recent trends in confidence here.

06:55I know that we've grown more and more confident that we will see significant snow into the northeast.

07:00So what's your take on the whole situation here as we're looking at this maybe 72 hours in advance?

07:06Yeah, there is greater confidence now.

07:08We're very confident about the widespread concerns across the southern part of the country

07:13that we've been highlighting, and now increasing concerns that the storm will also move up the coast

07:18and result in significant snow across the big cities on the I-95 corridor.

07:24It's a great time to download the free AccuWeather app, turn on push notifications.

07:29Our team of 100 expert meteorologists have been putting all kinds of localized detail

07:33and the best descriptions to help you to stay safer and be best prepared.

07:37That's what we do here at AccuWeather.

07:39All right.

07:39AccuWeather chief meteorologist John Porter.

07:41John, thanks so much for your insight as always, and make sure everybody out there is aware.

07:45There's a lot of human beings behind our forecast.

07:47A lot of the apps out there that we compete with don't have the human touch

07:51and common sense that goes along with all that.

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