Big Storms, Big Wind, Big Cold (Almost) Everywhere, Vermont To Escape the Worst

Boy, what an active week in the weather department!

A large tree was brought down by this week's
ice storm in a Dallas, Texas suburb.
 

As you might have seen on the news, a huge ice storm is causing havoc from Texas to Ohio, and will continue to do so often and on through the weekend.

Many people in those areas will have massive tree damage, closed roads and power failures that will last for days, maybe even weeks in a few spots.

Meanwhile, a huge cold snap is engulfing much of the western half of the nation, and will hit those areas that had the ice and the power failures. Should be fun, sitting in a cold, dark house with no power in subzero weather.

In the Northern Plains and Rockies, temperatures in some areas will go under 30 below with wind chills below minus 50 Ugh.

In California and the desert Southwest, record chill and hard freezes are threatening a broad range of crops.  I'm guessing foods like many kinds of vegetables, and fruits like oranges are going to get a lot more expensive, since so many crops will be lost to the freeze.

In Europe, things aren't much better as a huge storm is causing near record storm surges along coastlines from Britain to Germany, and hurricane force winds are causing tremendous damage.

So, local readers here in Vermont and surrounding states might be wondering? Is all hell going to break out here?

The answer is, not really. We'll dodge most of these bullets.

Some light mixed precipitation and snow will develop this afternoon and evening, especially the more south you go. There's a winter weather advisory for far southern Vermont and the Capitol District of New York for some freezing rain and an expected two to six inches of snow tonight.

Up near the Canadian border, there will be little, if any new snow tonight.

The weekend will turn chilly, but nothing extreme for December.

A new storm, which is really Round 2 of the massive ice storm in the central and southern United States, will take aim on the Northeast Monday.

Expect a really messy day, with snow, sleet, freezing rain and rain. It won't be anything like in the South, where all those trees and power lines are caving in. But there's a good chance you'll find some really lousy driving conditions in Vermont and surrounding states on Monday.

The cold wave from the west will finally arrive in earnest after Monday's storm goes by, but I don't think the cold here will be that extreme. Yes, you'll need to bundle up, and there's a chance some towns will find themselves shivering in subzero weather. But it won't be anything we haven't seen in pretty much every winter we've experienced in these parts.

So yes, the weather might not be particularly lovely the next few days, but at least it won't be a disaster. For us, anyway.