Daily Weather Briefing for Saturday, March 11, 2017

NATIONAL OVERVIEW

...Colder than normal across much of the nation with wintry weather expected for some places...

The warm weather a couple of days ago is now just a memory as much colder weather has settled in across much of the central and eastern U.S. An upper level ridge of high pressure will build in over the West which will allow a deep trough to remain in place over the central and eastern states. Arctic air will continue to spill southward across the Plains and eastward to the Mid-Atlantic coast, resulting in January-like temperatures. Many locations will observe temperatures that are easily 10 to 25 degrees below seasonal averages, with perhaps a few record lows in jeopardy. It's a different story for the southwestern U.S., where the ridge building in will result in dry conditions with mild to warm temperatures.

Now that the snow has departed the northeast U.S., attention now turns to a developing surface low over the northern Gulf of Mexico along the frontal boundary. Widespread rainfall is expected to develop across the southern Plains and the Deep South, with the greatest amounts expected across coastal areas of southeast Texas and southern Louisiana. Some strong thunderstorms will also be possible across this region. Farther to the north on the northern edge of the precipitation, a band of light snow is likely from northern Arkansas to the southern Appalachians.


LOCAL OUTLOOK

Cold Canadian high pressure continues to bring much below normal temperatures to our region through the start of the upcoming week. A low pressure system will spread rain and snow across our area tonight into early Sunday. Expect a brief period of dry weather Sunday night and Monday before another system brings a chance of a wintry mix back to our region Monday night and Tuesday. Unusually cold weather will persist through the week.


THREE DAY OUTLOOK




TODAY

Partly sunny with increasing clouds. Highs near the mid to upper 40s and winds out of the northwest. Chance of rain in the afternoon with rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch expected.


TONIGHT (Winter Storm Warning in effect at 7:00 PM)

Cloudy with lows near freezing and light winds out of the north. Rain expected between 6 pm and midnight with about a tenth of an inch of rainfall accumulation. Snow is expected to start sometime around 9 pm and snow accumulations between 1 and 3 inches are expected in the valleys with 3 to 5 inches at altitudes above 3500 feet.




SUNDAY

Cloudy early, then becoming mostly sunny by the afternoon with highs near the mid 40s and light winds out of the north. Rain and snow expected to be over by 11 am with less than a tenth of an inch of rain and less than an inch of additional snowfall.

SUNDAY NIGHT

Partly cloudy with lows near 30 and variable light winds.



MONDAY

Cloudy with highs near the lower 40s and winds 5 to 10 mph from the southeast. 60% chance of precipitation, with rain, freezing rain and sleet expected before 9 am with mostly rain afterwards.

MONDAY NIGHT

Mostly cloudy with lows near freezing. Rain is likely, mainly before midnight.



HAZARDS

Hazardous weather is expected later today and will continue into Tuesday.
A Winter Weather event will begin tonight with snowfall accumulations on 2 to 4 inches in the valleys and 3 to 5 or more in elevations above 3500 feet. The snow is expected to start around 9 pm tonight and end by 11 am Sunday morning. Freezing rain and sleet is expected Monday morning and another winter weather event may be possible overnight on Monday night into Tuesday morning.

Advisory products from the National Weather Service that impact Macon County have been posted below for your convenience.

NWS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK

..SATURDAY...Winter storm likely. Please see the latest Winter Storm Watch for further details.

..SUNDAY...Winter storm likely. Please see the latest Winter Storm Watch for further details.

..MONDAY...Winter weather possible. Accumulating snow and sleet may redevelop across the North Carolina mountains late Monday.

..TUESDAY...High winds possible. Strong northwest winds may produce very windy conditions.



***Winter Storm Warning***

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Greenville-Spartanburg SC
356 AM EST Sat Mar 11 2017

...ACCUMULATING SNOWFALL EXPECTED ACROSS MUCH OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA TONIGHT INTO SUNDAY MORNING...

.Cold high pressure will settle southeast across the region through the day today, setting the stage for accumulating snowfall across the region as moisture overspreads the area tonight. Snow is expected to develop across the higher terrain this afternoon and then work down into the mountain valleys, and across the foothills and Piedmont, through early Sunday morning. The snowfall will gradually end through late Sunday morning.

...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM EST THIS EVENING TO 11 AM EDT SUNDAY...

The National Weather Service in Greenville-Spartanburg has issued a Winter Storm Warning for snow, which is in effect from 7 PM EST this evening to 11 AM EDT Sunday. The Winter Storm Watch is no longer in effect.

* LOCATIONS...Macon, Southern Jackson, Transylvania, and Henderson Counties in the North Carolina Mountains.

* HAZARDS...Heavy Snow.

* TIMING...Beginning this afternoon at the higher elevations, dropping into the lower mountain valleys tonight, with the heaviest snowfall in the pre-dawn hours Sunday. The snow will taper off by noon Sunday.

* ACCUMULATIONS...Snow accumulation of 2 to 4 inches.

* IMPACTS...The heavy snow will create snow covered roads and produce scattered power outages.

* TEMPERATURES...Lows in the mid to upper 20s tonight, recovering above freezing on Sunday.

* WINDS...North 5 mph or less.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A Winter Storm Warning for heavy snow means severe winter weather conditions are expected or occurring. Significant amounts of snow are forecast that will make travel dangerous. Only travel in an emergency. If you must travel...keep an extra flashlight... food...and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency.

Please report snow and ice accumulations by calling the National Weather Service toll free at...1...800...2 6 7...8 1 0 1. Leave a message with your observation and the specific location where it occurred. You can also post your report to National Weather Service Greenville Spartanburg Facebook or tweet your report using hashtag #nwsgsp.

Stay tuned to NOAA Weather Radio or your favorite source of weather information for the latest updates. Additional details can be found at www.weather.gov/gsp.

As always, you can check to see what advisories, watches and warnings are in effect for Macon County by visiting http://is.gd/MACONWARN


MACON CALENDAR

If you have an event you wish to be added to this calendar, please send the information, along with a flyer of photo, to editor@maconmedia.com
There is no charge for civic, educational or non profit groups.

National Alliance on Mental Illness
Appalachian South

Meets each Thursday at 7pm
The First Methodist Church Outreach Center
at the intersection of Harrison Ave. and West Main Street
(directly across from Lazy Hiker Brewery)

Come join our weekly support group for anyone suffering from mental illness and their family or friends. This includes
Depression, Bipolar,8chizophrenia, PTSD, Substance Abuse, Etc.

Here you will find:
— others living with mental health challenges YOU ARE NOT ALONE
- learn coping skills and find hope in shared experience
- help learning how to break down stigma and guilt surrounding mental health
- how to live life with the expectation of a better a better future

Kay (706)970-9987 Denise (828)347-5000)


BENEFIT 4 BRITTANY & DIANE

Saturday, March 25 at 5 PM - 9 PM
at Cartoogechaye Elementary School

Learn more about it on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/events/1271875169584301/





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You can find out more information on how to do that and some of what I plan to accomplish if I reach certain levels of funding at >>
https://www.patreon.com/MaconMedia


Published at 5:08 am on March 11, 2017

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