WEST MICHIGAN -- A rather large low pressure system and tons of moisture will dominate our weather through Wednesday morning. It starts Monday night with a mixture of freezing rain south of I-96, and mainly snow along/north of I-96. By Tuesday morning I would expect 2" to 4" of snow from Grand Rapids northward and a mixture of snow/sleet/freezing rain south of Grand Rapids. Our Tuesday morning commute will certainly be impacted and school delays and some cancellations are likely.
Take a look at the ADVISORY and WARNING map below. Counties along the Indiana/Michigan stateline are under a WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY through 7 A.M. Tuesday. All other counties remain under a WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY through 1 P.M. Wednesday. Our northern counties of Oceana, Newaygo, and Mecosta Counties remain under a WINTER STORM WARNING through 1 P.M. Wednesday.
The next image below shows how we think this system will unfold. In short, we're expecting up to a third of an inch of ice across our southern counties with lesser amounts of snow, while areas further north will have less ice (or almost none) but with much heavier snowfall amounts. The snowfalls amounts are for the entire event through Wednesday morning.
Wind will also be an issue with this system. First, coming from the east at around 10 to 20 mph, then from the north/west at around 15 to 25 mph with gusts of 35 mph or higher Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. See our wind graphic below valid for 6 A.M. Tuesday . The larger, whiter numbers are the sustained wind speeds in miles per hour. The "G" number represents the gust. The arrow represents the direction from which the wind comes.
Below is our forecast model information for wind speeds 12 hours later at 6 A.M. Wednesday. Hand onto your hats!
The scope of this system is huge. About two dozen states will be impacted by it from the central plains, the upper Midwest, Great Lakes, to the northeast. To get an idea of what the radar may look like, check out the images below. The first image is valid for 6 A.M. Tuesday. Blue is snow, pink is freezing rain, green is rain.
The next image below is valid for 6 P.M. Tuesday. Note the heavy snow wrapping into the area behind the low.
The final image below is valid for 6 A.M. Wednesday. Note the (blue) snow...lake effect wrapping in behind his system, especially along/west of U.S. 131.
Another weather system is also expected to impact the area later Thursday into Friday with more mixed precipitation possible and perhaps wind too. Get the latest at www.fox17online.com/weather. Be safe! Chief Meteorologist Kevin Craig.
