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Snow is falling in the Carolinas and Virginia as a major winter storm moves across the Southeast, bringing dangerous cold, blustery winds and even the possibility of blizzard conditions throughout the weekend.
A coastal low developed off the coast of the Carolinas and rapidly intensified as the day progressed, pulling moisture north, while helping to lock cold air in place.
By Saturday night, this system will continue to dump intense snow over the Carolinas and Virginia, where snow totals could reach upwards of 5-8 inches by the weekend’s end.
Winter Weather Alerts stretch from the southern tip of Georgia all the way north into Maryland through Sunday.
States of Emergency are in place in Georgia and North and South Carolina as preparations continue for this nor’easter.
Officials urged residents to stay home and off the roads this weekend.
“Fewer vehicles on the roads give GDOT crews the space they need to treat roadways safely and efficiently, helping keep everyone safer this weekend,” Josh Lamb, director of the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, said.
The FOX Forecast Center is monitoring this storm for something called “bombogenesis,” or when a storm’s central pressure rapidly drops in a short period of time.
This leads to rapid intensification, which could result in intense tropical storm-force wind gusts, especially along the coastline.
Wind alerts stretch from North Carolina into Virginia, where gusts between 50-70 mph are possible.
“When you look at this in relation to a tropical system, this could, and let me emphasize could, be compared to a winter tropical storm,” said FOX Weather Meteorologist Michael Estime.
The wind, combined with rapid snowfall and low visibility, could create blizzard conditions for the coast, particularly along the Outer Banks.
Coastal flooding and erosion are also a concern with this system.
Winter storm impacts in the Northeast
As the area of low pressure develops and moves northward, impacts will begin to stretch into the Northeast and New England on Sunday.
The FOX Forecast Center said the exact track of the storm remains slightly uncertain, but many forecast models show the storm keeping snow off the coast until reaching Massachusetts and southern New England.
In the more aggressive scenarios, moderate to heavy snow is possible, particularly from eastern Massachusetts into Maine. Other outcomes, however, keep the bulk of the snow offshore with little accumulation inland.
The highest confidence for meaningful impacts is across southeastern Massachusetts, especially the Cape and islands.
Even with a somewhat offshore track, this area could still see snow, strong winds, and hazardous marine conditions.
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