BLOG: Round 2 On The Way
Round one has come to an end, but round two is on the way.
Temperatures were below freezing in much of the state this morning, just as the light layer of drizzle moved through. Although the amount of moisture was not much, it created a light layer of ice in some places. Since then, thick clouds and fog have been hovering over the state, only allowing temperatures to climb a couple of degrees. Just a couple of degrees is all that is needed to make for wet roads as compared to icy roads. At 2 p.m., it has risen to 33 degrees at BWI-Marshall, 36 in DC, and 41 in Ocean City. However, it's still 31 degrees in Annapolis - just enough to create patchy ice on the roads still this afternoon with the fog around. We are now preparing for round two to come our way later tonight.
The main storm is still out over the Midwest, heading our way tonight. This is where most of the moisture and most of the action is. We have seen everything from a full on blizzard in Oklahoma City, severe weather across the Gulf Coast, enough snow to temporarily close Dallas-Fort Worth airport (yes, during Super Bowl week), and ice accumulating in St. Louis and Indy. That is what's moving our way tonight. A freezing rain advisory goes into effect at 9 p.m. tonight and will continue through 7 a.m. tomorrow. ***We can't stress enough that this is a very borderline situation, but you only need to be a degree below freezing to have ice outside instead of rain.***
Temperatures start to fall late this evening/early tonight just as the new round of moisture is coming our way. So this is what we are thinking:
It will be an icing event north and west of the city where we could see .10-.25", while it will be a mix of ice/rain just along I-95, and mainly rain southeast of AA and PG County. Temperatures will start climbing from south to north late tonight/early tomorrow morning. This will put Ocean City in the 50s, but will take hours to erode the cold air dammed up throughout interior I-95. That's why we think that this is the biggest threat area for ice accumulation.
The rain and freezing rain will come to an end tomorrow as warmer air floods into the state. We will eventually top out in the mid to upper 40s tomorrow afternoon. But then a new round of colder air will come in on northwest winds Thursday and Friday with highs in the 30s.
And believe it or not, there are still more storms lined up to come our way - one being Saturday and another Tuesday. There could be a mix of rain and snow with the Saturday storm. We will keep you posted on this one as we get closer. Stay tuned.
