Cross-country winter storm packing a punch, bringing snow, ice and possible

“Expect snow for the front range of the Rockies and critical fire threats in the southern High Plains. By afternoon/evening, a powerful storm will begin to impact the Plains and Mississippi Valley with severe storms and winter weather,” the National Weather Service (NWS) tweeted.

“It looks like right now the heaviest snow will stretch from north-central Oklahoma all the way to Detroit with a thin band of ice just south of that line. Another item of concern will be the areas that change from rain and freezing rain to sleet pellets and finally to a layer of snow on top,” CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said.

Cities at risk for snow and ice include Kansas City, Chicago and Lansing, Michigan.

In addition to snow of more than 2 inches per hour at times, regions in the path of the storm will be subject to high winds, creating an even greater hazard.

“The combination of heavy snow and strong gusty winds may lead to severely reduced visibility and hazardous travel conditions on Thursday and Thursday night,” the Weather Prediction Center (WPC) tweeted.

Up to a tenth of an inch of freezing rain is expected from central Missouri to northern Ohio, which could make travel treacherous.

The Southwest may escape the worst of the storm; however it will experience its own weather hazards Wednesday.

Extreme wind gusts of up to 75 mph are possible in the area. A combination of low relative humidity and gusty winds could create the optimal environment for fire hazards, leaving more than six million people under red flag warnings.

The threat for severe storms emerges as the system moves eastward

“As the advancing cold front clashes with the warm and moist airmass Wednesday night, a line of thunderstorms may develop across North Texas and Oklahoma,” the WPC noted. “The potential exists for storms to produce damaging wind gusts, large hail, and isolated tornadoes in this region.”

Severe thunderstorms pose a threat of damaging winds, large hail and possible tornadoes.

“We constantly talk about the ‘ingredients’ necessary for a thunderstorm to produce a tornado. A few tornadoes are likely with the stronger storms, but this, at least right now, does not look like a massive tornado outbreak,” Myers pointed out.

“You should always have a way to get warnings, especially at night,” Myers emphasized.

As a cold front advances to the east Thursday, the threat of severe weather and heavy rainfall does, too.

The SPC projects an enhanced risk region over much of the…