TIMELINE: When will the ice storm move through the Triad? msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
TIMING:
Thursday Evening: Rain continues, heavy at times. Breezy, with the occasional gust up to 30-40 mph. Temperatures drop late evening almost instantly.
Credit: WFMY News 2
Thursday Overnight: Rain may briefly end mixed with snow. Drying out. Staying breezy. Icy patches may develop on some wet roads.
Credit: WFMY News 2
Christmas Morning: Watch for icy patches on roads. Dry, partly cloudy, and cold.
Christmas Midday: Partly sunny and cold. Few isolated snow showers possible. Wind chills in the 10s.
Credit: WFMY News 2
As our system moves away Christmas Eve night, Santa will still have a rough ride with the wind as our temperatures crash behind the front for Christmas Day. Highs will only reach the mid to upper 30s, and with the wind, feeling like the 20s or even the teens at times.
With another round of rain that pushed through late in the evening, plus already being dark, the roads won t have a chance to dry. That means that as temperatures drop back below freezing tonight, any moisture on the roads will refreeze creating patchy black ice by Thursday morning.
Those pockets of moisture or rain water left will be very thin and look like wet spots on the road to the naked eye, or maybe even hardly seen at all, which makes it that much more dangerous.
Credit: WFMY
We ll also have fog forming overnight than could actually freeze and make surfaces slick again. This means that railings, steps, car handles, etc could all be slick, as well as your driveway or sidewalks, too.
TIMELINE:
Wednesday AM (Through Noon): Light to moderate freezing rain. Light glaze of ice likely. Some areas north and west of I-85 could see more up to 2/10
Wednesday Midday: Temps warm slightly. Freezing rain comes to an end but regular rain continues. A burst of sleet is possible midday that could quickly accumulate. Roads could be slick.
Wednesday Afternoon: Rain tapers off.
Wednesday overnight: Dry and cold. Patchy black ice possible.
Credit: WFMY News 2
Right now it looks as if the best timing for seeing freezing rain will be from Wednesday morning until about midday. This happens as our temperatures hover between 29 degrees and 31 degrees. By lunchtime, we should be warming ever so slowly to at or above 32 degrees, with mainly regular rain for the afternoon. A burst of sleet is possible during the midday hours which could lead to slick travel.