Cold temps, winter storm warnings coming for Northeast

Colder weather will descend on most of the East Coast late this week, and a winter storm will bring both rain and snow that could reach up to a foot at higher elevations in parts of the Northeast, forecasters said.

Temperatures across much of the eastern part of the country will drop from highs in the 60s and 70s on Wednesday to the 40s and 50s on Thursday, the weather service said. Even Florida and parts of the Southeast will feel a little cold: Temperatures 5-15 degrees below average could be felt through Friday, according to AccuWeather.

While rain is likely across the Northeast later Wednesday into Thursday, at least 4 inches of snow is likely Friday night in northeastern Pennsylvania and the southern Catskills of New York, the National Weather Service said.

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“Impact snowfall” will also reach the Allegheny Mountains at higher elevations in West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, the weather service said. There the snow could be up to 1 foot.

“Travel may be difficult. Roads, and especially bridges and overpasses, will likely become slippery and dangerous,” the weather service in Albany, New York, said as it declared a winter weather advisory between Thursday afternoon and early Saturday morning.

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The storm will bring some relief to what has been an unusually dry period for the region, from Virginia up through New England. Red flag wildfire warnings have been issued there, and New York City declared its first drought warning in over two decades.

“Before the snow arrives, we will see some much needed rain to help with brush fires and drought conditions,” said AccuWeather Chief On-Air Meteorologist Bernie Rayno.

Winter weather advisories were in effect Wednesday in pockets of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky and North Carolina.

The Great Plains region is experiencing “near blizzard conditions.”

Heavy snow and gusts of wind created dangerous conditions in the central part of the country on Wednesday. “Near blizzard” conditions across the Northern Plains are coming from a slow-moving low-pressure system near the Minnesota-North Dakota border, the weather service said.

Snowfall totals across the Dakotas and northwest Minnesota could be up to 4 inches. Strong winds will be more widespread, reaching as far as eastern Montana and Nebraska. Gusts could exceed 60 mph through Wednesday night before weakening and falling by Thursday.

Meanwhile, the Pacific Northwest faces a dangerous “bomb cyclone” and an atmospheric river.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Winter storm warnings bring snow to the forecast for the Northeast this week