The National Weather Service has just extended the Winter Weather Advisory to include all of our communities. This has been issued due to sleet and freezing rain-- with ice accumulations of up to one inch in the forecast Saturday. You'll want to slow down and exercise extreme caution on the roadways. Beware of slippery surfaces-- if stepping out, watch your first few steps taken on steps, sidewalks, and driveways.
Moisture will begin moving northward tomorrow afternoon, and our southern most communities will see this occur around lunch time. By 5pm, we'll see this spreading into the metro and points northward by 7pm. Temperatures at the surface will be at or below freezing all day, but in the mid-levels we'll see numbers slightly above freezing-- which will set the stage for slight melting, before refreezing near the surface. (That's how you get sleet and freezing rain....depending on how shallow the freezing layer is) Check out the map below....all values below 0 (Celsius) equals 32° Fahrenheit. Being above 0°C/32°F means the mid levels are above freezing...which is how you get wintry mix (sleet, freezing rain).
Here's a look at our forecast-- and we'll be watching areas along and east of I-95 closely, as they have the greatest potential for ice accumulations. We'll be zero-ing in especially close to our southernmost counties as they will likely see the highest accumulation.
#staytuned
