Winter storm on the way Thursday for Omaha area

THINGS COULD RAPIDLY DEVELOP AND CONDITIONS COULD RAPIDLY DETERIORATE. TODAY IS A SEVERE WINTER WEATHER DAY WITH A WINTER STORM WARNING WILL BE IN EFFECT STARTING AT NOON TODAY THROUGH 6 A.M. FRIDAY FOR THE OMAHA METRO. FOR A FEW COUNTIES RIGHT NOW AND IOWA, POTTAWATTAMIE, HARRISON AND BACK TOWARD THE COLUMBUS AREA IN CENTRAL NEBRASKA. AND IT’S THIS AREA RIGHT HERE WHERE WE’RE ANTICIPATING THE HEAVIER SNOW BAND TO LINE UP. SO THAT’S THE AREA WE’RE FORECASTING 3 TO 6IN ATLANTIC THROUGH THE OMAHA METRO, BACK TOWARD DAVID CITY COLUMBUS. BUT YOU SEE THESE LITTLE PURPLE SPLOTCHES WE HAVE IN HERE? THERE VERY WELL COULD BE SOME ISOLATED SPOTS THAT PICK UP MORE THAN SIX INCHES, ESPECIALLY WHERE WE SEE THE HEAVIEST SNOW FALL THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING. DRY AIR. BIG FACTOR HERE DOWN SOUTH, SO WILL LIKELY SEE A VERY SHARP DROP OFF IN THOSE TOTALS ONCE YOU GET SOUTH OF THE METRO AREA. SO THE BULK OR THE HEAVIEST SNOW FORECASTED RIGHT ALONG THE CENTER OF OUR VIEWING AREA, RIGHT ALONG I-80 HERE IN THE OMAHA METRO AND INTO SOUTHWEST IOWA. SO HERE’S THE BREAKDOWN OVER THE NEXT 12 HOURS. MORNING DRIVE. TOTALLY FINE. CLOUD UP. DRY AIR LIKELY WILL STICK AROUND MOST OF THE MORNING TO AROUND NOON, SO COULD HAVE A FEW SNOWFLAKES BY AROUND NOON AND THEN REALLY EXPECTING BY ONE 2:00 WE COULD SEE HEAVY, WET SNOW DEVELOP AND SNOW FALL VERY RAPIDLY AND OVERCOME ANY ABOVE FREEZING TEMPERATURES TO START ACCUMULATING RAPIDLY AS WE CONTINUE TOWARD THREE, FOUR, FIVE, 6:00. SO CONDITIONS DETERIORATE, LIKELY QUICKLY AS WE HEAD TOWARD THE EVENING DRIVE TONIGHT. SO AGAIN, FINE IN THE MORNING. BUT BY THE TIME YOU HEAD HOME FROM WORK AND I KNOW A LOT OF SCHOOLS HAVE ALREADY CANCELED, SOME MAY CONTINUE TO CANCEL THIS MORNING, BUT LIKELY GOING TO BE A LOT WORSE FOR THE DRIVE HOME. I-80 370 LOOKING PRETTY GOOD FROM OUR SKYCAM RIGHT NOW. TEMPERATURE 23 DEGREES SO PLENTY BELOW FREEZING. YOU SEE DEW POINTS IN THE TEENS STILL GET A SATURATE THE AIR A LITTLE BIT MORE. WE’VE GOT A NORTH BREEZE RIGHT NOW TEN MILES PER HOUR. MOST TEMPERATURES IN THE UPPER TEENS TO LOW 20S. STILL SOME 30S DOWN SOUTH. THAT NORTH BREEZE 10 TO 20MPH IN MOST SPOTS. AND WE’LL SEE THOSE GUSTS 20 TO 30MPH. SO THAT’S ANOTHER FACTOR ALONG WITH POTENTIAL FOR HEAVY SNOW. WE COULD SEE THE WIND GUSTS AROUND 30MPH, REDUCING VISIBILITY, MAKING THAT TRAVEL EVEN MORE DIFFICULT. SEE THE CLOUD COVER INCREASING THIS MORNING. SYSTEM ON THE WAY. STARTING TO SEE THAT SNOW IN WESTERN NEBRASKA. SO STILL, SEVERAL HOURS BEFORE WE SEE ANYTHING HERE IN THE OMAHA METRO. SO LET’S WALK THROUGH STORM PREDICTOR. THIS SHOWING A LITTLE BIT OF LIGHT SNOW AT 7:00 OR 7 A.M. BUT AGAIN DRY AIR WINDS OUT THROUGH THE MORNING. I THINK THE MORNING DRIVE A-OKAY. LIKELY STARTING TO SEE THAT AIR SATURATE SOME SNOW DEVELOP. MAYBE A LITTLE LIGHT HERE IN THE OMAHA METRO BY NOON. AGAIN TRYING TO OVERCOME THAT DRY AIR. AND THEN AS WE HEAD TOWARD TWO 3:00, WE COULD SEE HEAVY, WET SNOW DEVELOP FAIRLY QUICKLY AND START TO ACCUMULATE QUICKLY, REALLY AROUND THE OMAHA METRO, THAT I-80 CORRIDOR WITH THAT DRY AIR JUST OFF TO THE SOUTH, SO WE COULD HAVE SEVERAL HOURS OF HEAVY, WET SNOW CONTINUING INTO THE EVENING. DRIVE HERE 6:00. BY 9:00, MORE OF THE HEAVY SNOW PUSHES INTO IOWA. STILL SNOW COMING DOWN, THOSE TEMPERATURES STILL DROPPING, ROADS BECOMING EVEN MORE DIFFICULT TO TRAVEL ON. AND THEN BY MIDNIGHT, MOST OF THAT SNOW MOVING OUT, CLEARING UP BY FRIDAY MORNING, BUT STILL LIKELY GOING TO SEE SNOW ON A LOT OF THE AREA ROADWAYS. BUT WE’LL SEE TONS OF SUNSHINE FOR FRIDAY. THOSE TEMPERATURES STRUGGLING TO WARM UP LIKELY STAYING IN THE 20S. SO OUR SEVERE WINTER WEATHER DAY THURSDAY WITH INCREASING SNOW CHANCES THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING AGAIN 3 TO 6 IN THE METRO, WITH ISOLATED HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE AND THE