Higher elevations in the Northeast may receive the season’s first substantial snowfall later this week, as a building storm system sweeps through the region from Thursday until Saturday morning.
The upcoming weather pattern is expected to provide slick travel conditions across Pennsylvania, West Virginia, New York, and New England. Cities like Pittsburgh, Syracuse, and Binghamton may get their first snowflakes of the year. While November snowfall is common in the inner Northeast, forecasters warn that the unexpected return to winter-like weather after recent mild temperatures may take drivers off guard.
The system is expected to create a messy combination of rain and snow, as well as gusty winds, causing AccuWeather RealFeel Temperatures to be 10 to 15 degrees lower than thermometer readings.
When temperatures are in the mid-30s, it might be difficult to tell the difference between rain, snow, and accumulating snow. “The intensity of precipitation can have a huge effect. Heavier precipitation can quickly cool the air, allowing rain to turn into snow, but lighter rain or drizzle may never do so. That means two places only a short distance apart could have drastically different conditions,” said AccuWeather meteorologist Tyler Roys.
In Pennsylvania and New York, accumulating snow is most likely in western Pennsylvania’s higher terrain, along portions of the Pennsylvania-New York state line, and across the Catskills. Forecasters are also keeping an eye on areas surrounding Erie, Pennsylvania.
Further south in the Appalachian range, elevations above 2,000 feet in West Virginia and southwestern Virginia may result in accumulations and hazardous traffic conditions.
Across northern and western New England, snow is forecast along mountain ridges running from northwestern Connecticut to western Massachusetts and into Vermont. Travelers traversing elevated roadways in those locations may expect slick pavement and decreased visibility until Saturday morning.
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