Monday, February 20, 2012

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow


We'll maybe not all of it, but the heavy wet snowfall we received yesterday will be fighting an uphill battle trying to maintain its frozen status over the next few days. We reached the mid 40s today, and I expect our highs to reach the low 50s tomorrow, low 60s Wednesday, and hit 70 on Thursday. That's a lethal lineup for even the deepest drifts found in the hardest hit areas of west-central Virginia. And then there's that problem with black ice that will be an issue for the next couple of mornings. I noticed my children this morning were wet rather than cold when they came inside from playing in the winter wonderland. This is nothing new to Virginians, as we've seen this scenario many times, especially as we approach Spring.
If you're a snow lover and the totals weren't enough to satisfy you for the season, take comfort in knowing that some of the biggest snows we've had in our state's history have occurred in the month of March. Nothing very promising is showing up in the pattern over the next week or so, with the only system of even minor interest arriving around the first of March. I'll be tracking any potential closely, and will have the latest on the air, at wtvr.com/weather, and on my facebook page. Enjoy the week, and the snow while it lasts. -Zach

Sunday snowfall will mostly melt Monday

All of central Virginia began Monday morning with a Winter wonderland still on the ground. Here's the sunrise view from Downtown Richmond looking toward Oregon Hill (left side of picture), where nearly 3" fell Sunday night.

The better snowfall was in the west-central and southwestern parts of Virginia, though, as depicted by this morning's post-snow storm snow depth map:

Areas in red on this snow-pack temperature map are the most prone to rapid melting today, especially aided by sunshine and highs in the upper 40s!


Here's some selected snowfall reports from Sunday's storm in central Virginia:
5.1" Glen Allen (Henrico Co)
5.0" Midlothian (Chesterfield Co)
4.0" Hanover (Hanover Co)
4.0" Ruther Glen (Caroline Co)
3.9" Richmond Intl Airport (Henrico Co)
3.8" 4 miles W of Bowling Green (Caroline Co)
3.5" 1 mile WSW of Brook Hill, City of Richmond
3.5" Victoria (Lunenburg Co)
3.5" 5 miles N of Boydton (Mecklenburg Co)
3.3" Caret (Essex Co)
3.0" Westover Heights, City of Richmond
3.0" Hampden Sydney (Prince Edward Co)
3.0" 7 miles NE of Disputanta (Prince George Co)
2.5" Chesterfield (Chesterfield Co)
2.5" Chester (Chesterfield Co)
2.5" Amelia Courthouse (Amelia Co)
2.5" 2 miles WSW of Meltons (Louisa Co)
2.5" 2 miles E of Blackstone (Nottoway Co)
2.0" Newland (Richmond Co)
2.0" City of Colonial Heights
2.0" South Hill (Mecklenburg Co)
1.7" 1 mile NW of Wakefield (Sussex Co)
1.5" Louisa (Louisa Co)
1.5" 1 WNW of Bottoms Bridge (New Kent Co)
1.3" 1 NW of Wakefield (Sussex Co)
1.0" Norge (James City Co)
0.8" Gloucester (Gloucester Co)
0.5" Jamestown (James City Co)

Here's another snowy sunrise shot from Ashland at the campus of Randolph-Macon College:

Stay with CBS 6, we'll keep you ahead of the storm!
--Meteorologist Carrie Rose