Cold air to freeze midwestern, northeastern US; Lake-effect snow to bury Great Lakes

By Brett Rathbun, AccuWeather.com Meteorologist

December 19,2015; 6:55PM,EST

 

 

The first blast of cold air of the month for the Midwest and Northeast will trigger flurries and bands of lake-effect snow through Saturday night.
For many locations, the cold blast will be limited to a couple of days.

Windy and cooler across the Northeast

JUMP TO: Cold air builds across Midwest, East| Bands of heavy snow to blanket Great Lakes | Cold air to leave prior to official start of winter
The cold air will come as a shock only because of prevailing warmth since the beginning of November.
Temperatures in portions of the Midwest and Northeast have averaged 10 degrees Fahrenheit above normal or greater through December thus far.
Cold air builds across Midwest, East
Cold winds will contribute to AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures in the teens and 20s across much of the region through Saturday. Anyone heading out to shop on the final weekend before Christmas will need to bundle up as you head outdoors.

Actual temperatures will range from 10 degrees below average over the northern Plains to near average around and downwind of the Great Lakes.
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The coldest air will settle over the Interstate-95 corridor on Saturday, where temperatures have struggled to dip to the freezing mark from Boston to Washington, D.C., thus far.
In New York City's Central Park, the temperature has dipped to 32 only once on Nov. 24, prior to this weekend.
Bands of heavy snow to blanket Great Lakes
As the air passes over the waters of the Great Lakes, the air will warm slightly. As a result, it will not get as cold as if the lakes were colder or frozen. However, the open and unusually warm waters will cause lake-effect snow to be quite heavy.
The most organized bands of snow will continue to stream off lakes Huron, Erie and Ontario through Saturday night.
The snow can be accompanied by thunder and lightning in some cases.

The natural snow will give winter sports fanatics a chance to ski and snowmobile.
According to AccuWeather Meteorologist Jordan Root, "Heavy snow will continue to bury Tug Hill Plateau in New York, as well as southwestern New York to northeastern Ohio. through Saturday evening"
Snowfall totals across the Tug Hill Plateau in upstate New York could receive between 2 and 3 feet of snow by Sunday. A few locations could receive slightly higher amounts.
"Travel will be rough on Interstate 90 from Cleveland to Erie and northward to Buffalo," said Root.
Motorists should expect locally heavy snow and difficult travel along portions of other interstates as well, including Interstate 79, 81, and 86. The fast rate of snow could shut down portions of I-90 and I-81.
Outside of any heavy snow bands, flurries will occur across most areas around the Great Lakes as well as the Appalachians.
Buffalo received its first measurable snowfall of the season on Friday night with 0.1 of an inch. Prior to this season, the latest date for measurable snow was on Dec. 3, 1899. However, the first day of at least an inch of snow remains to be seen this season. The latest date for an inch of snow or more was on Jan. 4, 1937.
Some folks in northeastern Ohio and northwestern Pennsylvania woke up to around foot of snow. Pierpont, Ohio received 10 inches Friday night into Saturday morning, according to a snow spotter. Slightly higher amounts of 12 inches were reported in Springboro, Penn., about 30 miles south of Erie, Penn.
However, the highest snowfall total so far was measured in Highmarket, N.Y. where 2 feet of snow had fallen as of early Saturday afternoon.

Cold air to leave prior to official start of winter
Temperatures will begin to rebound from west to east spanning Sunday in much of the Midwest and Monday in the Northeast.
The first several days of winter will feel more like spring. Winter officially begins on 11:49 p.m. EST, Monday, Dec. 21. Temperatures could challenge record high levels by Wednesday.
Storms forecast to take aim on the region next week will bring rain and not snow to the vast majority of the East.
Content contributed by AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.