At Least Light Icing Conditions Likely Saturday/Saturday Night

 Expected impacts:

• Areas of freezing drizzle, patchy, very light freezing rain and possibly some spotty sleet are expected to develop near 5-6am on Saturday and will continue at times through about 4-5pm Saturday
• Freezing drizzle, periods of freezing rain and/or sleet are likely to increase starting around 5-6pm on Saturday and continue through about 2am on Sunday
• The wintry mix is expected to decrease again around 2am on Sunday, and continue through about 6am on Sunday, mainly as patchy freezing drizzle
• Event total ice accumulation of up to 0.1 inch is expected, with 0.1-0.15 inch possible in some spots
• Event total sleet accumulation of a trace or other small amount generally less than 0.25 inch is expected

Probability of the specified ice amount (total) at a given location:

• Probability of <0.1 inch of ice: 70%
• Probability of around 0.1 inch of ice: 60%
• Probability of 0.1-0.2 inch of ice: 40%
• Probability of 0.2-0.3 inch of ice: 20%

Discussion:
Areas of freezing drizzle, patchy, very light freezing rain and possibly some spotty sleet are expected to develop near 5-6am on Saturday and will continue at times through about 4-5pm Saturday. The majority of this precipitation will be very light in intensity and somewhat spotty/intermittent in nature. As a result, significant icing conditions do not appear likely during the bulk of the daytime hours on Saturday at this time.

Freezing drizzle, periods of freezing rain and/or sleet are expected to increase in coverage and intensity starting around 5-6pm on Saturday and continue through about 2am on Sunday. Ice accumulation of up to 0.1 inch is expected, with 0.1-0.15 inch possible in some spots mainly during this time period. Sleet accumulation of a trace or other small amount generally less than 0.25 inch is also expected during this time period.

The wintry mix is expected to decrease in coverage and intensity again around 2am on Sunday, and continue through about 6am on Sunday, mainly as patchy freezing drizzle with little or no additional ice accumulation expected during that time period (however, with temperatures will below freezing, any existing ice conditions are likely to continue into Sunday morning).

With the above trends in mind, we would generally expect the primary concern with regard to hazardous road conditions to develop on Saturday evening and build into the evening and overinght hours. Earlier in the day on Saturday, the primary concern would be patchy, light ice mainly on elevated, metallic and other colder types of surfaces.

Please keep in mind that should even slightly higher ice accumulations occur, the threat for power outages and other issues will increase across the area. It would be wise to prepare as if such conditions may develop, that way you are not caught off guard should the situation intensify.

Please also note that another, likely even more significant, round of wintry weather is expected from Sunday afternoon into Monday morning.  Please refer to the latest post concerning that time period for additional details.