SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) — One of the storms crashing into the West Coast early this week will still pack enough of a punch as it moves inland for a period of snow and slippery travel to sweep through the Rockies and northern Plains.
A storm spreading across the Pacific Northwest into Monday night will reach southern Montana, Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado with a fresh snowfall by Tuesday.
Residents around Billings, Montana; Salt Lake City; and Laramie, Wyoming, may wake up to snowflakes flying and slippery travel as they head to work or school on Tuesday morning.
The snowfall will be rather brief in duration, so significant accumulations are not anticipated. Still, just enough to cause slick conditions on the roadways and minor disruptions is expected.
Accumulations are expected to generally range from 1 to 3 inches with higher totals on the order of 3 to 6 inches or more likely over the tallest peaks.
“Even portions of the Rockies that miss out on accumulating snow on Tuesday will still have some disruptive weather to deal with in the form of gusty winds,” AccuWeather Meteorologist Mary Gilbert said. “As the storm tracks across the Rockies, winds will pick up across the area and may reach hazardous levels for high-elevation areas.”
Wind gusts of 40-60 mph are likely to frequent the region, with higher gusts possible in the wind-prone areas.
Where snow is falling and the gusty winds are blowing, visibility can be drastically reduced on the roadways. This includes stretches of interstates 25 and 80.
The Colorado ski resorts will be on the receiving end of some fresh powder for the slopes, but accumulating snow should fall short of reaching the Denver metro area. At most, there may be a few sprinkles or flurries in the city late Tuesday.
From Tuesday night into Wednesday, snowfall will expand farther eastward into the northern Plains.
“Enough snow may fall across parts of the Dakotas and Nebraska to cover some roadways and prompt travel slowdowns. Motorists on portions of interstates 29, 90 and 94 will want to keep an eye to the sky for changing conditions Tuesday night into Wednesday,” Gilbert said.
Accumulations are forecast to generally be on the lighter side in these areas, but once again, forecasters caution that all it takes is a slippery covering on the roadways to lead to dangerous travel conditions.
Several inches of snow to as much as 10 inches can pile up in a few spots in a narrow zone from southeastern North Dakota to northern Missouri.
An area of high pressure over the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley is likely to block the storm’s northward progression, forcing it to take a more southern track. This will likely prevent any snow from reaching places such as Minneapolis and Chicago, but may push wintry weather farther south to locations such as Omaha, Nebraska, and Kansas City and Springfield, Missouri.
“The area from southern Missouri and northern Arkansas eastward to parts of southern Illinois, western Kentucky and northwestern Tennessee has the potential to receive accumulating snow from Thursday to Thursday night as the storm begins to manufacture its own cold air, rather than pull it in from the northern tier of the U.S.,” according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.
“Where the snow falls at a moderate to heavy pace, several inches of snow can pile up, especially on non-paved surfaces, but even some roads and sidewalks can get slippery,” Sosnowski added.
As the storm reorganizes farther south and gains moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, it is likely to deliver yet another soaking rainfall to the already soggy Southeast later this week. But, once again, the storm may manufacture just enough cold air to bring snow to the southern Appalachians and Piedmont areas from Thursday to Friday.
( AccuWeather meteorologist, contributed this report.)
