By Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist,
and Gary Kopycinski, Editor & Publisher
Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- Even though spring is officially underway, a snowstorm threatens the return of wintry weather in Park Forest and the Northeast. Park Forest will see its share of the white stuff beginning Sunday night. Before that, however, Park Forest will see rain Sunday. The chance of precipitation is 100%, according to the National Weather Service. Then, after 7 p.m., the rain will become all snow. The chance of snow is also 100%.
Sunday night expect a low around 32 with an east southeast wind around 5 MPH becoming northeast after midnight, the National Weather Service says. The new snow accumulation could be 1 to 2 inches.
Monday should see a high of 46 with a possible high of 50 on Tuesday. But don’t look for sun on Tuesday. Instead, at this point, the National Weather Service forecasts a rain/snow mix and then rain.
But that’s not until Tuesday, and it will be more involved for the Northeast, AccuWeather says.
Millions of Americans might think the idea of winter weather is just a joke given the snow drought that parts of the Northeast have experienced this year. However, there’s even a chance, if a storm materializes, that some cities could end up with more snow during spring than the entire winter season.
“Old Man Winter may be serious this time with accumulating snow likely, mainly over interior locations, just when millions may have thought that spring had a stranglehold on the region,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson said.
The setup is likely to unfold with snow in the Midwest and the Northeast, as two storms taking aim at the region, according to AccuWeather forecasters.
The first storm will travel from the lower Mississippi Valley on Sunday to the eastern part of the Ohio Valley on Monday. However, a second storm is forecast to develop along the North Carolina coast during Monday and travel northeastward, just off the mid-Atlantic and New England coasts from late Monday to Tuesday morning.
Just enough cold air is expected to linger from this weekend to allow the primary form of precipitation to occur in the form of snow across interior portions of the Northeast. Closer to the mid-Atlantic coast, and down through the Deep South, rounds of rain are expected.
“The heaviest accumulations with this upcoming spring snowstorm will likely be in the higher elevations above 2,000 feet. This includes the Catskills, Berkshires, southern Green Mountains and White Mountains, where some spots may see a foot or more,” Anderson said.
A general 3-6 inches of snow is forecast from northern Pennsylvania to central Maine and northern Connecticut. Lesser snow is anticipated over the valley locations in this swath, on the order of 1-3 inches.
An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 12 inches is forecast over the highest terrain.