Snowy Thanksgiving Eve: An Update

Via @MrPatrickDugan on Twitter, a power line
burns near West Hartford, Ct. after tree branches and
lines broke amid heavy, wet snow.  

That nor'easter, as expected, is screwing up travel and causing other problems as it makes its way up the coast at the moment.

The storm's track was a tiny bit west of original forecasts. That meant that some of the big cities in the Northeast, like Washington, New York, and Boston, had more rain and mixed precipitation and less snow than forecast.

The storm was winding down in Washington DC as of late afternoon, and colder air was filtering in to places like New York City and Philadelphia, so mixed precipitation and snow will move back in before the storm moves on in a few hours.

The slightly westward track also pushed heavier snow more to the west than expected. In particular, central New York State and northwestern Vermont are getting more snow than originally forecast.

Where I live in the northwestern tip of Vermont, the original forecast of about an inch has turned into four or five inches. As of 5:30 p.m., it was snowing moderately in St. Albans, and a little over an inch had accumulated already.

A car crash, with injuries amid slippery road
conditions in Holliston, Mass.  

The snow is even wetter and heavier than expected in central and interior southern New England, again owing to the more westward track of the storm bringing in slightly warmer air.

The slushy accumulation is really weighing down trees and power lines, and power failures are pretty widespread in the region, especially in Massachusetts and Connecticut. 

So far, the highest snowfall total in the Northeast is 10 inches in Lanesborough, the the Massachusetts Berkshires.

Earlier, as the storm moved through the Mid-Atlantic States, up to 18 inches of new snow was reported in the Virginia mountains.

It still looks like the New York's Hudson Valley, western Massachusetts, southern Vermont, southern New Hampshire and parts of Maine are in the 10-18 inch bullseye for snow.

Often, a band of heavy snow sets up near the northwestern fringe of the main precipitation shield of a nor'easter, and that seems to be happening.

By late afternoon, four inches of snow had already
accumulated in Ludlow, Vermont. Up to a foot
is forecast in the area. Things are looking good
for nearby Okemo Ski Resort.  

It looks as if that type of band is setting up through the southern Adirondacks, into western Vermont near or just southeast of Burlington, then into central and northeastern Vermont, northern New Hampshire, and perhaps western Maine.

The prediction is for a storm total of 6 to 10 inches of snow in this area, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if some towns get a foot or a bit more of snow with the region I just described.

This storm continues to move right along, so the heaviest snow in New England will happen between now and midnight. Maybe until closer to dawn in Maine.

If you wisely postponed traveling in the Northeast today, tomorrow will be a better day. They'll be clearing the roads early in the morning, the snow will have pretty much stopped by sunup (except maybe in Maine) so you should be good to go.