A very unsettled start to the work week, as a major late season winter storm intensifies over the Great Lakes. Parts of the Upper Midwest will experience blizzard conditions and FEET of snow. Here in the Hudson Valley, will be a MUCH different story.
THE MORNING…
Monday starts out cloudy and unsettled. A period of rain showers are likely before sunrise, and could last through the AM commute.
The futurecast radar shown suggests some scattered light rain showers with a few heavier downpours possible. Winds won’t be strong during the morning hours, with gusts under 20mph expected through mid day. Plan for the possibility of wet roads and reduced visibility for your AM commute to work and school.
THE AFTERNOON…
Conditions begin to deteriorate during the afternoon hours. South winds will intensify to 10 to 20mph… possibly gusting to 40mph.
There should be a low level temperature inversion preventing the strongest winds from mixing to the surface. If the inversion holds, gusts will likely be 20 to 30mph… but the higher elevations and especially the Catskills will see the stronger wind gusts… and have a Wind Advisory. There gusts over 40mph are possible during the afternoon. In addition, scattered rain showers, with localized thunderstorms are possible. Be prepared for localized heavy downpours… and the heavier downpours could contain locally stronger wind gusts.
THE EVENING…
The conditions really deteriorate near sunset… as the winds out of the south intensify further. Lower elevations should see gusts 25 to 40mph, but locally higher gusts are possible. The Catskills & higher elevations could see wind gusts 40 to 55mph, and if the temperature inversion breaks down, parts of the valley could see those gusts as well. Areas that see gusts this strong could see scattered power outages. We’ll be watching this very closely on Monday.
The squall line approaches between 9pm and midnight. As it blows through, gusts over 50mph are possible, thunder & lightning are also possible, as well as torrential downpours. There is a “Slight Risk” of severe thunderstorms, which could produce scattered power outages. Rainfall totals between 0.50″ and 2.5″ are possible, amounts could vary greatly based on location, due to localized heavier downpours.
We’ll be tracking things CLOSELY on Monday, and provide updates as we go through the day. With a more detailed analysis of the Severe weather & wind threat possible early on Monday.