David’s Evening Forecast - Staying breezy overnight as winter storm moves out
OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Bands of snow and wind gusts of 50 to 65mph created near whiteout conditions and areas of dangerous travel across eastern Nebraska and western Iowa Friday. That storm system now moving out of the region, with calmer conditions on the way for this weekend.
7:00 PM UPDATE: All winter weather alerts have expired across the region as our winter storm continues to wind down. Occasional wind gusts of 20-30mph will be possible overnight, but nothing like what we had earlier today. A few patches of blowing snow are still possible, but that will not be a major concern into Saturday morning. Temperatures will slowly fall into the middle 20s by morning, with wind chills in the 10-15° range. Although main roads and highways are in good shape, many side roads and neighborhood roads will likely remain slick or snowpacked into tomorrow morning. Expect plenty of clouds to stick around on Saturday, keeping us chilly with highs only around 32°. A little more sun will move in on Sunday, with highs climbing into the middle 30s.
4:00 PM UPDATE: Here’s a look at snowfall reports across the area as of mid-afternoon Friday! The wind made it more difficult to measure the snow, obviously, with much higher drifts in spots. Highest wind gust of the day (67 mph) occurred this morning in Norfolk.
3:00 PM UPDATE: The Blizzard Warning originally in effect for the majority of the WOWT viewing area (including the Omaha Metro), has been cancelled as of 3PM. A Winter Weather Advisory will now take us through 7 PM, as blowing snow remains possible. However - snow bands are becoming less impressive Friday afternoon, with wind gusts now under 50 mph. Visibility should gradually improve this evening.
1:30 PM UPDATE: Around 2 to 3 inches of snow has fallen within the Omaha city limits as of early Friday afternoon. Higher amounts of 4 to 6 inches have been reported across parts of western Iowa. Here, especially in SW Iowa, travel is not advised. With snow continuing to fall, and winds gusting up to 55 mph, most of the WOWT viewing area is experiencing a mile or less of visibility. Snow rates should decrease mid to late this afternoon, with wind speeds backing off this evening and tonight.
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Additionally, wind gusts of 40 to 55mph are expected through much of Friday with the strongest gusts likely during the midday hours. Wind gusts will gradually back off into the evening but it will be a slow process. These winds will combine with any amount of snow to produce whiteout conditions. Travel will become difficult to nearly impossible at times through Friday afternoon, especially in Western Iowa where travel is not advised in many locations as of 10:30am.
Snowfall amounts will vary greatly across the metro, with lower amounts of 1-2″ expected near Fremont, Valley and Waterloo, increasing to near 4″ inches in downtown Omaha, with the potential for a few 5″ totals in Council Bluffs. The heaviest snow is expected in west central Iowa, where amounts of 5″ to as much as 7″ are possible. Snow should generally taper off by Friday afternoon, but gusty winds will remain which may result in continued blowing and drifting snow throughout the evening commute.
Snow will completely end early Friday evening, with winds finally calming down overnight. We should get a little calm weather for the weekend, with highs in the low to mid 30s.
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