Brace Yourself: Heavy Snowstorm Set to Blanket the Midwest This Weekend

A storm traveling from the northern Plains to the Midwest and Northeast into midweek will spread a swath of accumulating snow in some areas and rain in others, AccuWeather meteorologists say. The storm will affect travel along the way and may thoroughly soak revelers waiting outdoors in New York City.

The storm will track across the north-central United States into Tuesday night and across the Northeast from Tuesday night to Wednesday.

Mild Pacific air in front of the storm will result in mostly rain from St. Louis to Indianapolis and Pittsburgh. As the storm progresses, just enough colder air will sneak in on the backside to allow snow to mix in or a complete change to a period of snow at the tail end along part of the Interstate 70 corridor.

Periods of rain and wet snow are in store for Chicago, Milwaukee, and Detroit into Tuesday evening, which could make travel slippery for revelers, especially in the suburbs of these Midwest cities.

As the storm progresses across the Northeast states from Tuesday night to Wednesday, rain will fall from the Ohio Valley to the mid-Atlantic and New England coasts, as well as over the central Appalachians and mountains in southern New England. There will be some thunderstorms south of the storm track as well.

“We expect rain to move into midtown Manhattan sometime between 7 and 9 p.m. on New Year’s Eve and continue into the early morning hours on Wednesday,” AccuWeather Meteorologist Alex Duffus said. “The rain will be heavy at times, and people standing in Times Square will get soaked during the evening.”

Actual temperatures will be near 50 F at midnight, but AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures may be close to 40 when the wind blows during the rain. Thunder and lightning can accompany the rain on New Year’s Eve in New York City.

Just enough cold air will sweep in on the back side of the storm to change the rain to snow in parts of the central and northern Appalachians, and then a period of lake-effect snow will quickly follow around the Great Lakes.

The amount of snow that falls on the central and northern Appalachians from Tuesday night to Wednesday will depend on the elevation. The valleys and low elevations may receive little to no accumulation. However, a quick coating of snow is possible during any snow shower or brief snow squall.