BLUEFIELD —
Winter continues to linger across the region with a round of heavy, wet snow and high winds expected tonight and Wednesday.
William Perry, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Blacksburg, Va., said rain and sleet is expected to change into snow tonight as temperatures drop in the evening hours.
“Snow is still likely on Wednesday and it will taper off into snow showers Wednesday night,” Perry said. “It looks like a wet snow. If it comes down quickly, the winds could pick up and cause some power outages. We do have winds that could pick up Wednesday up to 30 or 35 miles per hour out of the west on the backside of the storm.”
Perry said the amount of snow and how quickly it comes down could depend on the direction the storm takes. If the storm moves in more quickly or takes a more southerly direction, Perry said Mercer County could see more snow. Perry said presently the track of the storm indicates the most snow will fall in areas including Greenbrier and Pocahontas counties in West Virginia as well as Giles County in Virginia.
“Giles County is under a winter storm warm watch as that area could see several inches of snow in several hours Tuesday evening through Wednesday. That eastern region is the southern fringe of where the heaviest snow is going occur. For now, the Mercer County and surrounding areas will only be clipped by this storm.”
By Thursday, Perry said rising temperatures should change snow into rain.
“Thursday there is still some scattered snow showers, but not as long lasting as what we had over the weekend,” he said. “It could turn into rain before ending Thursday.”
Though the week will be chilly, Perry said the region could get a taste of spring during the weekend with temperatures expected to reach into the mid-50s.
“It could get to 39 Thursday and then warm up to 45 on Friday and 54 on Saturday, so the snow should melt by the weekend,” he said. “We are looking at highs in the mid-50s throughout the weekend and into next week. It should be sunny Saturday, and we are looking at scattered clouds for Sunday.”
Perry said temperatures are expected to fluctuate over the next two weeks, which is typical for March weather.
“The pattern could change and allow us to warm up for a little bit,” he said. “Our patterns indicated we will warm up and then cool down to below normal temperatures but also below normal precipitation around March 14.”
— Contact Kate Coil at kcoil@bdtonline.com
Local News
Related Photos
-
Dave Marquis loads a truck with salt at the Mercer County headquarters of the West Virginia Division of Highways in Princeton Monday as preparations are made for an approaching winter storm. Staff photo by Eric DiNovo
Discussion
March 5, 2013
Wintery mix forecast throughout region
- Local News
-
- Armed robbery under investigation in Mercer County
- Power outages reported in several local counties
- Two dogs confiscated in Bluefield
-
Mountain Fest kicks off
- Southwest Virginia sees rise in violent and non-violent crimes in 2012
- Early voting begins today for cities of Bluefield, Princeton
- Two hospitalized following collision between motorcycle and Jeep
- Report finds drug-related crimes increasing in Southwest Virginia
-
Carnival opens as 2013 Mountain Festival gets underway
-
War man charged with murder
A bond hearing was scheduled Monday in McDowell County Circuit Court for a War resident soon after he was charged with first-degree murder in the death of a local man.
- More Local News Headlines
