NOW: 1/6/10 Midwest Snowstorm

[MatthewCarman]

A snowstorm is affecting the midwest. I was told there is a 20 car pileup just outside of Newton on Interstate I-80 here in Iowa via radio. Anybody planning on traveling from Des Moines east on I-80 may want to take another route.

At my house I have 3-4" of snow on the ground. Last time I measured I had 2.25" of snow and that was over an hour ago. I am expecting near blizzard conditions soon and some very cold temperatures

 

[swilson]

We have a Winter Weather Advisory for the Cincinnati or "Tri-State" area, (OH, IN, and KY). forecasting anywhere from 3 to 8 inches of snow depending on the source. This usually means for us, that if it hit's at rush hour traffic tomorrow morning, we're in for some driving fun. Right now it looks like it's going to hit us a little before morning rush, which means driving fun.

 

[Joel Wright]

Started snowing here a few hours ago. Still have less than an inch but the heaviest won't come till later. Expecting 5-7" here to go with the 5" we already have on the ground. Gonna be a rough go of it over the next few days with strong winds setting in. Iowa is going to be really bad where some areas in the northwestern part of the state have nearly 30" on the ground now.

 

[Brian Stertz]

Have picked up 3" here in OP so far....will be hard to measure from this point on as the blowing snow has started. Looks like maybe one more area of snow to come through before the Siberian Express runs us over....woot woot

 

[Jim Saueressig]

Same deal here Brian, not more than an inch here but the last snow was all dry and so it is all drifting a bit.

 

[Chris Heater]

Snow started here not long ago. Already a dusting on the ground. At this pace we'll wind up with our 6 to 9" of snow. It'll get real ugly when this stuff starts blowing around, cause it won't take much

 

[Ryan Wichman]

Snow started here not long ago. Already a dusting on the ground. At this pace we'll wind up with our 6 to 9" of snow. It'll get real ugly when this stuff starts blowing around, cause it won't take much

How can you possibly predict 6-9 inches based only on a dusting?

For the sake of keeping this post legal by ST rules, we have seen around 2 inches so far and seeing radar returns picking back up into northern Missouri. Looks like this heavier snow is on the nose of a 500mb jet nosing in.

 

[Andrew Pritchard]

Snow started here not long ago. Already a dusting on the ground. At this pace we'll wind up with our 6 to 9" of snow. It'll get real ugly when this stuff starts blowing around, cause it won't take much

I'd go as far as to say the opposite right now, and that my 7" forecast for Champaign may be well over done. We can't have any more than an inch on the ground right now, and the back edge of the heavier round is already making it into west-central IL. Things will really have to slow down or I'd call for a let down, as central IL probably won't see as much from the deformation zone as northern IL will. Hopefully this next round setting up packs a punch, or central - eastern IL may only end up with a few inches.

 

[Danny Neal]

Measured 2.6 inches at my place (2 W of Romeoville) with moderate snow continuing to fall. I could easily see at least 9 inches of snow based on current radar trends as well as possibly getting into the lake effect band that is expected to begin later this afternoon. Not quite sure the band will extend this far south but 9 inches of synoptic snow looks like a good bet. I have work tonight at the fire house (about 8 miles west of the lake shore) therefore we could be seeing close to a foot there. The commute should be outstanding

 

[Chris Heater]

Haven't gone out to measure yet, but we have between 4 and 5" with moderate to heavy snow falling now. I think it will last long enough to give us around 6". I'm happy anyways...it was enough to give us a snow day today!

 

[Larry J. Kosch]

Snow...Cold...Windy!!

We got about 2-3 inches of snow in Lincoln NE, far short of the forecasted 4-6 inches. There were some whiteout conditions in the Omaha area where the snow was heavier. The local weather forecasters took a hit on this one!

However, we are bracing ourselves for the coldest days of the season. Today's forecast high +5 F, with NNW winds 25-35 mph, windchill down to -25 F. Low temps for tonight is expected to be around -11 F. A lot of local and regional schools are closed for today due to cold weather.

Tommorow would be a nice day to stay in bed! Forecast high -5 F with wind chill down to -30 F and low dropping to about -23 F. That would be a record breaker for the month of January if it happens!!

I was smart enough to use my snowblower to clear my driveway late yesterday. Hope my car starts tomorrow!!

Edit: My snow measurements was based on eyeball estimates. I was busy last night clearing my driveway and porch steps so I have a pretty good idea as to how much snow fell. With the winds blowing it was hard to get an accurate estimate, yardstick or not!! LJK.

 

[Mike Smith]

We got about 2-3 inches of snow in Lincoln NE, far short of the forecasted 4-6 inches.

A one inch difference is "far short"?

I think we are being awfully hard on ourselves if we think that forecast was a big bust.

 

[Robert Dewey]

A one inch difference is "far short"?

I think we are being awfully hard on ourselves if we think that forecast was a big bust.

Well, in all fairness that's an error of 33% - that would be like coming up 8 inches short on a 24 inch snowstorm

 

[Larry J. Kosch]

Proof of Snow Estimates!

For those who were doubting my ability to estimate snow fall amounts, here is "proof":

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/images/oax/news/OAX_snow010710_2.png

A closer look at the map shows the Lincoln area to be in the 3 inch range. Omaha got the lion's share with estimate over 5 inches. NE Nebraska got blasted with 8 inch plus snow totals.

Any further comments should be sent by IM to me. Thanks. LJK.

Edit: Lincoln NE is in Lancaster County. Omaha NE is in Douglas County.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Some photos from the eastern STL metro area:

http://stormhighway.com/blog/jan610a.shtml