Winter storm warnings are in place for parts of nine states as a strong nor'easter storm is expected to dump eight inches of snow on New York and up to a foot on New England.
The National Weather Service (NWS) issued alerts for Alaska, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and West Virginia, warning of heavy rainfall and snow, as well as the possibility of flooding.
In its latest forecast, the NWS said that the storm would rapidly push east on Tuesday morning and would be well over the Atlantic later in the day, but would continue to produce areas of rain and snow across the mid-Atlantic and into southern New England.
The areas facing the heaviest snowfall are anticipated to range from eastern Pennsylvania through northern New Jersey, far southeast New York, and southern New England. This will include the greater New York City metropolitan area.
"This heavy snow is expected to produce locally significant travel disruptions," the meteorological agency said, as strong winds coupled with heavy, wet snow "may result in downed trees and power lines which will result in concerns for power outages.
"Some coastal flooding will also be possible today during high tide along the northern mid-Atlantic and southern New England coasts."
On Monday, the storm produced areas of heavy snow across the Ozarks before transitioning towards the northeast overnight.
The NWS warned that the Maryland panhandle and northern West Virginia could see rain transition into heavy, wet snow, with accumulations of up to 8 inches and winds gusting as high as 40 miles an hour.
Meanwhile, a swathe of central and eastern Pennsylvania will see wintry precipitation, with additional snow accumulations of up to 8 inches after as much as 9 inches was forecast on Monday.
Up to 8 inches of snow is expected to fall in New York until Tuesday evening, with winds of 35 miles an hour making travel very difficult. Similar conditions are also anticipated for northern New Jersey and Connecticut.
Snowfall totals are set to reach up to 9 inches across Massachusetts and Rhode Island, with wind gusts as high as 60 mph through Tuesday. The NWS said that some areas in New England could see localized snow totals of up to a foot.
At the same time, meteorologists are forecasting that a new storm system will arrive in the Northwest from the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday and Thursday, bring a fresh surge of moisture and heavy precipitation—with 2 feet of new snow anticipated to fall on mountain ranges in the region.
Western states have already faced several bouts of heavy snowfall so far this winter, having been subjected to a "prolific series" of atmospheric river storms.
Last week, two powerful atmospheric river storms that made landfall over California caused areas of flooding and mudslides and several deaths, prompting the state's Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency for several counties.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Aleks Phillips is a Newsweek U.S. News Reporter based in London. His focus is on U.S. politics and the environment. ... Read more
