Blizzard Update For Friday Night: Just Getting Started

January 22- The snow bands have already hit many very hard so far, with some in Maryland measuring snow over 6 inches already as of 10 PM. Meanwhile I was amazed how disappointed others have been with only a few inches after an evening of snow.  Let me start by saying this is just getting started. Winds are increasing, the coastal Low is developing rapidly, and it is still way down the coast.  You will wake up to close to a foot of snow on the ground, then we have all Saturday ahead of us. Take this snapshot of the radar as of post time, showing more bands of even heavier snow on the way. The timing of ‘around midnight’ for blizzard conditions to set in appears to be on track. See the updated National Weather Service zone forecasts at the bottom of this post.

Winds:

This image was the NAM Model forecast from mid afternoon. It showed moderate winds already, but the actual reports from local stations seem to be over achieving. Note that wind driven snow can look impressive and cause white outs. But the criteria for a blizzard is 35 mph AND 1 inch per hour snowfall rates for 3 consecutive hours.  Check out the 10 PM reports as some locations are close to blizzard levels, then see the wind forecast timeline below.  Winds will continue to get stronger overnight! Then we’ll get to the ice and rain line, and updated snow totals.

• Washington-National: NE 22 G 28
• Quantico, VA: NE 23 G 35
• Baltimore BWI: NE 20 G 30
• Annapolis: NE 17 G 25
• Easton: NE 21 G 30
• Ocean City: NE 24 G 35
• Patuxent River: NE 25 G 32

Wind Timeline:

Notice the wind speed increase Saturday morning and last throughout the day.