A Major Snowstorm Looks Increasingly Likely for NYC

Some 180 million Americans are bracing for impact as the threat of a severe winter storm looms across large swaths of the country from Texas to Massachusetts. As the weekend draws near, the final path of the storm remains uncertain: Models are predicting anywhere from minimal precipitation to close to a foot of snow in New York City.

On Wednesday, the National Weather Service warned the storm system will bring heavy snow, sleet, and freezing rain from the Rockies and the Great Plains beginning on Friday, moving toward the East Coast and potentially up through New England on Monday. The agency advised that the impacts of ice and snow will be prolonged due to plummeting temperatures from yet another arctic cold front. Currently, winter-storm watches stretch from parts of New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, and the Carolinas up through Ohio, Indiana, and Virginia, with more states likely to follow. By Thursday, that list expanded to Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and New York.

As of Thursday, the NWS’s office in New York is warning that a “significant winter storm” is probable beginning on Saturday night with the heaviest snow expected to fall on Sunday into the evening, noting that the current probability of a snowfall of at least six inches is more than 85 percent. A social-media post from the agency urged residents to prepare for “considerable disruption to transportation and daily life.”

While plenty of uncertainty remains about the extent of the storm, New York City Emergency Management is urging New Yorkers to remain vigilant and “prepare for extreme cold weather this week,” as snow is expected with “at least a few inches possible” and the chance of higher totals based on the storm’s path.

“Think through how you will get to work if roads or transit are slowed. Make contingency arrangements for adult caregiving, healthcare, and childcare visits, especially if you or someone you love has disability, access, or functional needs. Plan for pets, including warmth, limited outdoor time, and enough food. Ensure you have enough food, water, and medicine at home for you and your family in case stores or deliveries are difficult to access Sunday or Monday,” the agency advised on Thursday.

The always indispensable New York Metro Weather X account writes that conditions are ripe for the city to potentially see its most significant snowfall in a decade, but it also makes it clear that the storm just missing the city remains a possibility and that at this point no forecaster knows for certain.

In January 2016, a massive blizzard struck much of the Northeast and mid-Atlantic; Central Park recorded 27.5 inches of snow, the largest snowfall in modern New York City history. It just edged out the previous record holder of 26.9 inches during the 2006 blizzard, and between those were the two 20-inch blizzards of 2010.