WEATHER BLOG: Storm Is Underway In Many Forms
The storm is underway, but in many different forms.
There is such a range of weather going on across our state, that what you are getting really depends on where you live. Snow amounts are up to 11" in Garrett and Allegany counties, while winds, heavy rain and even thunderstorms are pounding the Eastern Shore. The battleground between the two has generally been the city. When you go northwest of the city, outside the Beltway really, snow has been accumulating all morning. There are reports of 3-6" already in Frederick and Carroll counties, with 2-3" amounts around Reisterstown.
Meanwhile, I-95 back into the Beltway has been the battleground between rain and snow. It has gone back and forth, but the roads are just wet. There is just not a pool of cold air to pull from even when the winds turn around to the northwest, so we needed the precipitation to come down hard to compensate for the warmer air at the ground. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on what kind of weather you like), that is not happening so the warmer air and March sun are winning out. At this point, rain will probably change over to snow later Wednesday afternoon with a small, slushy accumulation in the evening - but we are backing way off the previous 3-6" predicted accumulation for the immediate metro area.
Heavy rain and thunderstorms continue to pound the Eastern Shore and Southern Maryland. Coastal flood watches and warnings are in effect, mainly for the western facing areas of the Bay and the beaches. The heavy rain will start winding down in the evening but the high winds will continue. Wind gusts are already topping 40 mph and will through the night, pounding the coastline. It will still be windy Thursday, but not quite as high - gusts closer to 30 mph.
Spotty rain and snow showers are still possible Wednesday night and maybe even Thursday with this storm just off the coast. Then, another push of air from the north Friday could give us another rain or snow shower before this storm finally fully leaves us for the weekend. Sunshine will return and highs will get back up to the 50s Saturday and Sunday.
