DETROIT (WWJ) – December was a little light in the snow department this December, but it looks like we’ll start January with a good dose of it.
Much of the Midwest is gearing up for a heavy snowstorm at the turn of the calendar and AccuWeather meteorologist Carl Erickson says metro Detroit could be getting in on the action.
Erickson, speaking live with WWJ’s Jackie Paige and Tony Ortiz on Wednesday afternoon, says New Year’s Eve will likely see rain around midnight, but that will soon turn to snow.
“But as we head deeper into New Year’s Day itself, as that storm really intensifies as it moves off to the east, we’ll start to get some of that colder air wrapped in, so I think that rain will begin to change over to snow by the end of the day on Saturday and it looks like we could have some more accumulating snow Saturday night into Sunday morning,” Erickson said.
Erickson says it appears Detroit and the surrounding areas will get about 1-3 inches of snow over the holiday weekend, but other areas of the state – including Lansing and Flint – are looking at about 3-6 inches.
“Obviously, if that tracks a little bit further south, those heavier bands of snow could make their way back into our area,” Erickson said.
The National Weather Service's New Year's winter weather outlook says "a large winter storm system is possible during the holiday weekend" and it "has the potential to create regional impacts and travel disruptions."
The NWS says while current data suggests the likely time window for the heaviest snow is between Saturday afternoon and Sunday afternoon, that could change and the most heavily impacted areas are expected to be pinpointed in the coming days.
Metro Detroit didn’t see much snow in December, aside from a few light snow storms, including Tuesday’s that had largely disappeared by the end of Wednesday.
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Erickson says that may change as we move forward into January.
“We do have some more opportunities for some colder air to come in and also a more active storm track, especially as we head into the second week of January,” he said.
Specifically, between Jan. 6 and Jan. 11, Erickson says “there's a couple of opportunities where you have that cold air in place and an active storm track where we could at least have some chances for accumulating snow.”
