Winter weather warnings have spread across the eastern United States – stretching more than 1,400 miles from Mississippi to Maine, an area representing 80 million people, CNN meteorologists said.
“I am particularly concerned about snow storms affecting the interior of South and North Carolina.
“It’s really windy at 40 mph which will knock out the electricity in the area,” he said.
A foot of snow falls near the edge of Blue Ridge Mountain in Greenville and 20 inches of snow accumulates over 4,000 feet in that area. Even a tenth of an inch of snow is possible.
The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a blizzard warning for parts of South Carolina that will be in effect beginning Monday morning and temperatures will remain frozen through early next week.
Up to a foot of snow and a half inch of ice can be found in the Charlotte foothills. Raleigh will have 2 inches of snow and a quarter inch of snow, forecasters said.
“The heaviest hailstones are expected in the Carolinas this morning. Significant impacts are expected to pass through these regions,” the NWS said.
The governors of Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia have declared states of emergency, allowing resources to stabilize before the storm arrives.
The National Weather Service in Atlanta said strong winds were expected Sunday in parts of northern and central Georgia.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp ordered the State Department of Defense to prepare 1,000 National Guard troops to respond to the storm.
Mid-Atlantic and Northeast
On Sundays and Mondays, the storm will turn northeast toward the east coast.
Some snow will fall in key metropolitan areas, but a change in rain will prevent accumulations. Washington can get 2-4 inches, Philadelphia 1-2 inches. New York and Boston should gain an inch each.
Heavy snow is expected in other places and above a foot in some places.
The intensity of snowfall in the region could be severe enough to prevent severe frosts, but the NWS warned that untreated surfaces could still accumulate ice and lead to dangerous travel conditions.
Most snowfall will occur Sunday afternoon through Monday morning.
Interior cities such as Charleston, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Syracuse and Burlington, Vermont will experience heavy snowfall.
Forecasters said the region will experience cold temperatures and dangerous gusty winds in the northeast ahead of the snowfall.
Coastal flooding is also expected
With the possibility of snowfall, strong easterly winds associated with the storm system could cause extensive coastal flooding up to 3 feet off the ground in parts of the northeast coast at high tide.
Forecasters said parts of New York, Long Island and parts of Connecticut were under a coastal flood warning.
The timing of the wind blowing from east to south will largely determine the intensity of flooding, and moderate flooding is possible if the wind changes before high tide.
“Extreme levels of flood danger have been announced in at least three locations, including roads, parking lots, parks, lawns, homes and businesses,” the NWS in New York said on Saturday.
Flooding can lead to road closures and structural damage along the Atlantic coast.
CNN meteorologists Alison Cinsor, Chad Myers, Dave Hennan, Monica Garrett and Haley Bring contributed to the story.
