Overview
- Blizzard Warnings are in effect for parts of western Minnesota and northern South Dakota, with widespread winter storm watches and warnings posted from the Dakotas and Wisconsin to Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York.
- A sharp cold front flips rain to snow on Wednesday and sets up multi-day lake-effect bands from Wednesday night through Black Friday and into the weekend, with the U.P. of Michigan and northern Wisconsin targeted for 1 to 3 feet.
- Northwest Pennsylvania faces a Lake Effect Snow Warning with 8 to 12 inches likely and up to 18 inches in inland Erie County, while Ohio’s snowbelt east of Cleveland could top a foot as bands shift inland.
- Winds frequently gusting 40 to 60 mph will drive blowing and drifting snow, with the NWS reporting 1-inch-per-hour rates near the Twin Cities and warning of whiteouts on corridors including I-29, I-90 and I-94.
- The NWS in Marquette urges avoiding travel Wednesday and Thanksgiving Day, and forecasters caution that band placement around Lakes Erie and Ontario remains uncertain as wind shifts late in the event could redirect the heaviest snow.