We have had 7 inches of snow so far from lake effect which brings us to 10 inches for the month and 23 inches for the season. Some areas in Kent and Ottawa counties have seen well over a foot of the white stuff. Grand Rapids broke a daily snowfall record for Jan. 5, with 8 inches of fresh snow. The old record was 6.4 inches, set in 1954. Muskegon also broke a daily snowfall record with 5.3 inches Wednesday. We had seen very little lake effect over the past fives years this will possibly make up for lost snowfall this year. What we have on the ground should stick around for awhile as the CPC guess have us at near normal temps and precipitation over the next couple weeks.
We currently have light snow falling with a temp of 14°. Yesterdays high was 20° the low was 4°. Temps are generally in the low teens to single digits across southern Michigan and single digits into negitive territory in northern Michigan this morning.
...WINTER STORM WARNING NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 PM EST THIS AFTERNOON... * WHAT...Heavy snow. Additional snow accumulations of 1 to 7 inches. * WHERE...Ottawa, Allegan and Van Buren counties. * WHEN...Until 4 PM EST this afternoon. * IMPACTS...Plan on difficult driving conditions at times. The hazardous conditions could impact the morning commute. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...US 31, I-196 from Zeeland to South Haven, and I-94 west of the Kalamazoo and Van Buren County line look to be most impacted with heavier snow showers producing accumulations of a half inch to one inch per hour. Some primary and secondary roads across western Van Buren County may be in very poor condition with significant amounts of snow covering the roadways. Eastern portions of these counties will likely have much less in the way of travel impacts.
Forecast Discussion
- Lakeshore Snow Showers into this Afternoon The heaviest snow shower activity still looks to be confined to the western halves of our lakeshore counties through the morning and into early afternoon before diminishing. Significant snow accumulations have likely been occurring underneath the dominant band that has been passing over Big and Little Sable Points and coming onshore across extreme western Allegan County and into western Van Buren. Treacherous travel conditions have been observed west of Paw Paw on I-94 which is where models have consistently shown a max in omegas within the DGZ. For Ottawa and Muskegon Counties, little occurred overnight as the band has remained primarily offshore, but we are still expecting a slight jog to the east through the early to mid morning hours (as is already occurring in fact), bringing the western portions of those counties in play for 0.5"-1.0"+/hr snowfall rates for a time with some locally significant travel impacts. Other locations across eastern portions of our lakeshore counties will see considerably less snow with only minor inconveniences to travel. There is a question with regard to how quickly the band moves inland and dissipates. The Nam3km does this several hours quicker than the HRRR/RAP13, which prefers little movement in the current band placement, perhaps an initial jog to the east and then a migration back toward the coast before weakening. Lift within the DGZ, 1000mb- 700mb RH, and 925mb-850mb omegas suggest we need to stretch out the Warning a bit further in time than previously thought as these model fields are not declining until mid afternoon or so. In addition, it is looking less likely that the band will cause Warning level impacts to Kalamazoo County so we are downgrading to an Advisory, as there should still be impacts to travel primarily for the western half of the county especially between 09z-18z. - Very Light Wintry Mix Possible Saturday Night Model guidance indicates less than a tenth of an inch of mixed precipitation is possible Saturday night as a robust 50kt LLJ advects warmer air and some Gulf moisture up into Lower Michigan. This looks to occur at night with temperatures in the upper 20s to low 30s. Although this looks like a minor event, there could be some slippery roads developing if the precip stays liquid until contact with colder road surfaces, turning it to ice. - Lake Effect Snow Showers for Sunday Night through Monday Another blast of Arctic air arrives Sunday into Monday with a WNW to NW lake effect setup taking place. With the DGZ dropping toward the ground the flake size will not be optimal, thus accumulation rates will likely not be very impressive, but often in these setups the visibility reductions can actually be worse than events that produce larger dendrites. In addition, 850mb winds look to be 30-35 kts which should get some snow shower activity inland a bit. Surface winds look to be 15-25 kts so there could be some travel impacts from this event even though it may not be a significant snow producer. - Milder Mid Week to Late Week Period After highs in the teens early this upcoming week, we look to quickly rebound into the 30s as rising mid level heights and low level warm advection takes shape over the Great Lakes. Toward the end of next week there is some support by ECE ensemble members of additional precipitation that could impact our region, potentially snow. Upper level pattern evolution a week out, however, is highly variable and subject to change until details become clearer.
What a simply fantastic winter storm! Hopefully we will see many, many more this winter! I plan on skiing tomorrow and snowshoeing on Sunday! Conditions should be incredible! Winter is the best and rock roll will live forever! Get outside and enjoy!!!
It has been snowing continuously since before 5 am here in Otsego – we have 11 inches of snow on the ground…
The lakes are freezing over fast ice fishing at its best …InDY …
Did you see Zeeland picked up 18 inches of snow from the storm? I love it!
With some clearing the overnight low here dropped down to 0° the official overnight low at GRR looks to have been +1. Of course that it by far the coldest it has been this winter season. at this time it up to +5 here with clear skies to the east and clouds to the west, overhead there are clouds but to the east and NE it is clear. Officially GRR reported 5.3″ of new snow fall yesterday. Here at my house I recorded 6.5″ yesterday at GRR they reported 11″ of snow on the ground here at my house I… Read more »