The weather in the central U.S. has turned crazy! There are winter storm warnings in the northern tier of states, there are wind advisories on the map and then there's severe weather in Nebraska and Kansas. This map shows just how crazy it's getting. In this view, there's hardly a spot that isn't either currently affected or will be soon.
The winter weather is expected to continue across the Great Lakes and up into New England Wednesday afternoon through Thursday morning. Parts of Wisconsin could see 8-12 inches, New York state could see 3-6 inches and up around Concord, New Hampshire is likely to see nearly a foot of snow.
The severe weather is expected to march through Missouri, Illinois and Kentucky through the overnight hours tonight and up through the Ohio Valley on Wednesday. This will push eventually into the mid-Atlantic region bringing a chance for severe weather into the nation's capital.
Today brings another hodge-podge of weather across the northern 1/2 of the United States. Much of the area along the Canadian border from Montana to Michigan is under Winter Storm Watches/Warnings for up to a foot of snow. In addition, a small area of New York and Pennsylvania are also under a Winter Storm Watch.
While at the same time, parts of the central and southern plains are under wind and fire advisories.
Finally, some areas in the middle of the country are under a slight risk of severe thunderstorms today.
This crazy weather is all due to a frontal boundary making its way south through the U.S. Temperatures at 1:30pm EDT show 20s and 30s near the Canadian border to the 80s in Texas and the southeast.
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The last couple days have seen numerous records fall, yet again, in the nation's mid-section. Snowfall amounts of 20+ inches were seen in parts of Oklahoma and Arkansas. Places like Jay, OK (25"), Siloam Springs, AR (24.5") and Hutchinson, KS (17") are digging out from heavy snow. The cleanup is further compounded by the blast of arctic cold that came in behind the system.
Lows Thursday morning broke records in states such as Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas and Missouri. Bartlesville, OK set a new all-time low for the state of Oklahoma with -28°F! Other locations setting records were:
- Wichita, KS (-17°F) - beat old record for this date by 5°F
- Springfield, MO (-10°F)
- Amarillo, TX (-6°F)
The good news for everyone is that there's a February thaw heading their way. Places like Bartlesville, after setting a record low this morning, will be looking to rebound to the mid 50s by Sunday afternoon. Amarillo is looking for the mid 60s by Sunday as well. The thaw looks to continue into at least the middle of next week. Some forecasters are even saying that some areas could see as much a 100° jump from the frigid temperatures of this morning with temperatures in the next week pushing the 70s in some locations!!!
As the Midwest finally sees some thawing, the Northeast will remained locked into a cold and wintry pattern with another round of snow coming this weekend. A dip in the jet stream over the Northeast will help keep cold temps in place while allowing the "big melt" in the middle of the country.
While winter is far from over (we just passed the mid point of winter recently), this warm up will do a lot to help areas thaw out after a brutal first half of winter.