Snow Report: Tuesday, December 17, 2019

A steady snow will fall throughout the day on Tuesday, resulting in several inches of accumulation and tricky travel conditions.

WHAT

Low pressure will track across Pennsylvania on Tuesday. Snow to the north of the low will pass through the Finger Lakes with the core of the snow falling across the southeastern portions of the region.

ALERTS ACTIVE

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES are in effect for the following counties (listed alphabetically):
Allegany, Cayuga (southern ONLY), Chemung, Cortland, Livingston, Onondaga, Ontario, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins, Wyoming, Yates

WHEN

Snow will begin before dawn from south to north across the region. Areas north of I-90 may not see the snow until just after dawn.

Steady snow will fall throughout the day with periods of heavier snow possible. Snow will taper to on and off snow showers from southwest to northeast during the later afternoon and early evening hours. The steady snow should exit the region by 7 PM.

HOW MUCH

The highest snow amounts will occur within any small, localized heavy bands that set up. These are most likely across Chemung, Tioga, and perhaps southern Cortland, southern Schuyler, southeastern Steuben, and southern Tompkins counties. Here, localized amounts could approach 8 inches.

Snow amounts will decrease to the north and west. Around 4 inches should fall from a Wellsville-Penn Yan-Syracuse line, with lesser amounts to the northwest. The majority of the region should see between 3-6 inches.

TEMPERATURES

Temperatures will move very little during the event, starting the day in the upper 20s and perhaps reaching 30 degrees during the afternoon. As the snow ends during the evening, temperatures will fall back into the low and mid 20s.

TRAVEL IMPACTS

This system should have a MODERATE impact on travel conditions for both the morning and evening commutes Tuesday, as well as the hours in between.

Most, if not all roads, will have snow and slush that will require reduced speeds. Many rural and secondary roads will be snow covered. Allowing for extra travel time is highly recommended.

Travel conditions in the north and west will likely be a bit less difficult than those further south and east.

OTHER IMPACTS

No other significant impacts are expected with precipitation remaining all snow and winds staying light.

FORECAST CONFIDENCE

MODERATE – There is still some uncertainty in where the heaviest snow bands will set up, as well as in the overall path of the system. This could result in a shift in the cut-off between 2-4 inch snow amounts and 4-8 inch snow amounts.

Localized variations in snow amounts are always expected, but could be enhanced by the presence of small, locally heavy snow bands within the larger area of snow.

FUTURE SNOW OUTLOOK

Scattered snow showers are likely Tuesday night, beginning within 1-3 hours of the steady snow ending. These may keep road conditions less than ideal through Tuesday night.

A cold front will move through Wednesday morning. Behind the front, widespread snow showers and heavier squalls are expected into the evening. These squalls will pose a significant travel threat with brief periods of near-zero visibility and rapidly changing travel conditions.

Lighter lake effect snow will continue Wednesday night and into Thursday for areas southeast of Lake Ontario, possibly including the Auburn and Cortland areas.

FUTURE UPDATES

• Regularly scheduled Tuesday morning post (Between 7-8 AM Tuesday)
• Snow Report: Wednesday (Between 2-5 PM Tuesday)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• Get the forecast for your Zip Code
• Finger Lakes Weather Radar
• Ask Meteorologist Drew Montreuil a question
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