(CNN) — The next winter storm is already moving in and is expected to bring heavy snow, blizzards, hurricane-force winds, possible tornadoes and severe flooding as it heads from the U.S. Southwest to the Northeast during the week.
The first major winter storm of the season continues to leave snow. It dumped more than a foot of snow in the Northeast and brought rain, snow, ice — and even the first tornado of the year — as it moved from the Gulf Coast to Maine.
With this system largely finished on Sunday, attention turns to the next one. It is forecast to rapidly strengthen into an exceptionally powerful January storm and produce significant and widespread impacts east of the Rockies starting Monday.
More than 10 million people are under winter weather warnings, from California to Illinois. Millions more will be affected by storm threats on the warm side.
While it will be a fast-moving system, traveling more than 1,500 miles in 72 hours, it will produce significant snowfall in more than a half-dozen states.
Widespread snow accumulations of at least 6 inches are expected from northern New Mexico to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Heavy snow and strong winds will create blizzard conditions this Sunday as the storm leaves Arizona and heads into the region. shelf from Texas (the northernmost part of the state) and Oklahoma this Sunday evening. Blizzard warnings had already been issued in Colorado and New Mexico this Sunday morning.
Snow fall: A model is forecasting snowfall for the next storm starting Sunday morning. These snowfall totals could change or shift depending on the storm’s final track.
Low visibility and difficult to near-impossible driving conditions will occur across the Southwest this Sunday, the Central and Southern Plains this Monday, and the Midwest this Tuesday.
The strong winds will also bring wind chill values below zero degrees in some locations in the Plains.
Snow and cold won’t be the only concerns as the storm will move northeast, intensify and expand its reach across much of the eastern half of the United States by mid-week.
Flooding, damaging winds and even tornadoes will also be a concern.
Along the Gulf Coast, warm, moist air will fuel the threat of severe storms, including some strong tornadoes and damaging winds.
Strong storm threat
More than 15 million people are threatened by a severe storm this Monday from Texas to Florida. This Tuesday, more than 35 million people are under the same threat level, from the Florida Panhandle to the Outer Banks of North Carolina.
An equally serious concern is the risk of significant flooding from the storm’s strong winds carrying water toward the coast and its powerful storm surges.
“Widespread and potentially significant river and flash flooding is likely from the central Gulf Coast to much of the eastern United States early this week,” the Weather Prediction Center said. “Powerful onshore winds will cause widespread coastal flooding along the eastern Gulf Coast and much of the Eastern Seaboard.”
Widespread precipitation totals of 1 to 3 inches are expected from the Gulf Coast to New England, with isolated spots exceeding 4 inches.
There is great concern about flooding in the Northeast with this next wave of rain coming soon after the first storm saw more than 6 inches of snow fall across several Northeastern states.
Heavy rain will speed up snowmelt and increase the amount of water flowing into streams, raising the cap on the potential for flooding in these areas. As a result, there is a flood risk level 3 out of 4 in parts of New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania on Tuesday. The level 2 or 4 threat extends almost the entire path of the first storm, from Georgia to Massachusetts.
Risk of heavy rain
A Level 3 or 4 flood risk has also been established along the western coast of Louisiana shelf of Florida, the northwestern region of the state, due to the risk of flooding resulting from the first wave of rain this Monday.
Rain is both a gift and a concern for Louisiana and Mississippi as both face severe droughts, although it has improved substantially since November following a recent excess of rain.
Cities along the Gulf Coast from New Orleans to Tallahassee, Florida, have been more than 4 inches above normal for rainfall since Dec. 1, so it won’t take long for saturated ground to be flooded.
Wind is another concern when the ground is saturated. It makes trees more vulnerable to falling onto power lines or homes. And the winds will be strong enough to cause such damage.
“Strong winds on the warm side of the storm could exceed 50 mph (80 km/h) and cause damage from the Appalachians to the East Coast,” according to the Weather Prediction Center. The center also warned people to “prepare for power outages” due to potentially damaging winds.
The strongest winds will occur closer to the coast.
High wind warnings are likely to be issued over the next 24 hours, but the National Weather Service office in Boston said it may need to issue hurricane-force wind warnings — warnings of winds similar to those of a category hurricane 1 – for coastal areas. areas if the worst storm forecasts come true.
The winds will also cause strong waves of 2 to 3 meters and significant beach erosion will be possible. Dangerous rip currents are also likely, which will continue until at least mid-week.
The storm system looks to end towards the end of the week, but another storm looks like it could follow a similar path and hit some of the same areas later in the week and weekend.
2024-01-07 16:11:00
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