John Matthews
WMAL.com
STERLING, VA — (WMAL) School children and teachers have had little to cheer this winter in terms of class-canceling snowstorms, and coming off of two straight days of spring-like temperatures, the storm approaching the DC area overnight into Thursday morning isn’t likely to set off much excitement, either.
The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Watch for areas to the extreme north of the area – places like Frederick, Carroll and Washington Counties in Maryland. Those places have the potential for five or more inches of snow, and they represent the southern edge of what is expected to be a significant nor’easter stretching through New England into Thursday evening.
Closer to the Beltway, all the forecasters can muster is a Hazardous Weather Outlook, with “accumulating snow” possible for the northern and western suburbs.
After temperatures push towards 70 again Wednesday, clouds will give way to showers tonight as temperatures plunge towards freezing. Overnight rain could change to sleet and snow before dawn Thursday, but with pavement temperatures elevated by the recent warmth, most accumulation will be limited to grassy areas, with a dusting to an inch in most spots.
Northern areas of Montgomery and Howard Counties could see some slushy buildup on roads, but further to the south, some places may see nothing but rain.
Whatever falls, it should all be ending by around 9 am Thursday, replaced by gusty winds and highs struggling to reach 40 degrees.
What do they think this is… winter?
Copyright 2017 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (PHOTO: National Weather Service)
