Early this morning (Saturday, February 21), the National Weather Service upgraded NYC’s “Winter Storm Warning” for this weeked to a rare “Blizzard Warning.” New snowfall forecasts predict 1 to 1.5 feet of snow in the area from Sunday into Monday, in addition to “whiteout conditions with visibilities below a quarter mile in heavy blowing snow,” plus wind gusts of up to 55 mph.
Long Island and Southern Connecticut are also under Blizzard Warnings now, with southern CT, the Lower Hudson Valley, and southern Westchester still under Winter Storm Warnings.
Snowfall rates of one to two inches per hour are expected by Sunday evening, with even over two inches of snow per hour possible. The National Weather Service has deemed “dangerous to impossible” travel conditions. The strong wind gusts and heavy snow load could also result in potential downed tree limbs and power outages.
The most likely snowfall accumulation is 15 inches for NYC, but the highest possible amount is 21 inches. “If low pressure continues to trend closer to the coast,” NWS notes, those higher numbers are possible. The snow will begin Sunday during the day, but the heaviest snowfall will be from 7 p.m. Sunday to 12 p.m. Monday.
NY Metro Weather reports that this is the first “Blizzard Warning” issued in NYC since 2017, nine years ago.
You can see the NWS’s entire, most updated storm briefing to gain even more details on coastal flooding impacts, marine affects and more. They do note that “subtle adjustments or wobbles in the storm track could raise or lower snowfall totals.”
Manhattan borough President Mark Levine reshared the predictions with the message “This will be a very intense storm. Please take this seriously,” urging New Yorkers to stay safe.
This article will be updated as more information becomes available.