Good afternoon, folks. Heavy rain continues to blanket the bluegrass state and this is causing the potential for local flooding issues into the early evening. From there, it’s game on for a rapid drop in temperatures and a switch to snow, Travel later tonight into Sunday morning is going to be tough with the flash freeze and some snow on top of it.

Let’s get a check on the current Winter Weather Alerts…

You may see a few more counties added to that Winter Storm Warning before all is said and done.

My thoughts on how this storm haven’t really changed much…

  • Cold air quickly crashes into western and northern parts of the state during the late afternoon, changing rain to snow.
  • A steady band of moderate to heavy snow works from west to east across the state into early Sunday. That band of snow gets lighter across eastern Kentucky.
  • A swath of significant snow is likely to fall across parts of western and central Kentucky. That’s oriented from southwest to northeast.
  • Wind gusts of 35-45mph will be likely and that may create near blizzard conditions for a few hours this evening into the wee hours of Sunday for some areas.
  • With temps dropping through the 20s and into the teens, a flash freeze is likely. Throw snow on top of that and travel conditions go downhill quickly. I would not be surprised if a few roads are briefly closed.
  • Snow showers taper to flurries on Sunday as temps struggle to get out of the teens. Wind chills will be single digits to near zero at times.
  • A quick hitting flake maker may zip into western Kentucky Sunday evening.

 

I’ve made some minor adjustments to the snowfall map, pulling down the 3″-8″ line a little farther south than earlier…

The lines aren’t going to work out perfectly, because the weather doesn’t really work along lines. Even within the 3″-8″ areas, there will be some streaks of underachieving and a streak or two that may overachieve.

The new European Model is actually a little farther east with the heaviest snows. It has double digit across parts of the bluegrass and northeast…

The NAM has a similar corridor of double digit snow amounts, but is a little farther west…

The Canadian has it between Louisville and Cincy…

EXACTLY where this band of heaviest snow sets up may be a game time decision. That means a lot of nowcasting this evening and tonight, but that’s actually fun to do in such a dynamic event.

I mentioned those winds that may create near blizzard conditions for a few hours. Check out the gusts around 1am Sunday…

If such a wild and dynamic storm like this one doesn’t get you excited, you need to turn in your weather lover card. 🙂

I would love to talk about what I’m seeing this coming week and beyond, but I’m gonna stick to the current winter storm script.

Additional updates come your way later today, so check back. Until then, here are some trackers to get you started…

 

Hamburg Area from WKYT Studio
Lexington

I-75 @ Newtown Pike
Lexington

I-75 MP 127
Georgetown

I-64 at KY-801
Near Morehead

I-64 MP 97
Winchester
I-64 WB @ MP 97

Mountain Parkway @ MP 36
Near Pine Ridge

Florence

No image available.

Covington

No image available.

No image available.

Louisville

No image available.

No image available.

No image available.

E-town

No image available.

I-65 MP 36
Near Bowling Green
I-65 MP 36

I-65 @ 234
Near Bowling Green
I-65 @ 234

Natcher Parkway MP 5
Near Bowling Green
Natcher Parkway @ MP 5

US 41A Gate 5 Fort Campbell Entrance
Fort Campbell
US 41A @ Gate 5

I-24  MP 4 @ US 60
Paducah
I-24 @ US 60 MP 4

I-24 MP 7 @ US 62
Paducah
I-24 MP 7 @ US62

Have a good one and take care.