Freezing Rain
Update
Sleet/Freezing Rain Hickman Co
Sent in from Ryan Edwards in Hickman County. This is enough to produce problems with roads:
Reports of Snow/Sleet
Snow on the ground being reported in parts of Henry, Humpreys, Hickman county, sleet reported in Benton. Peope- start sending in pictures!
Thursday Forecast
Big rains possible by end of day, its looking like a wet evening commute. We’ll keep you posted on the slight risk this morning of mixed precipitation but the big event will be later today. Expect the rain/storms to continue well into the evening. Highs will reach into the upper 40’s. As the rain leaves a shot of cold air arrives, this will change the rain over to snow. Expect to see some flurries on Friday morning but we don’t expect enough of it to stick to the roads. The low will just get to freezing so no icy spots either. Highs on Friday will only get to the upper 30’s tomorrow with lots of clouds. This is how wet it looks tonight according to Predictor:
Road Risk OUtlook This Morning
Radar makes it look like a major event underway- hardly any of the precipitation is hitting the ground however. As we head toward daybreak we expect some light sleet/ freezing rain along the western edge to move toward Nashville. We are keeping a close watch to this- right now it looks like a minor event but we all know how just a little bit of freezing rain goes a long way in making for dangerous roads. It would be a short lived event- we’ll be above freezing by daybreak with highs getting in the upper 40’s this afternoon. More in the forecast in a moment.
Rain Tomorrow Could End In Snow Showers By Friday Morning
The above title to this entry is sort of self explanatory. Right now no big accumulations are expected Friday morning, but if any areas get a heavy snow shower for a few minutes, there could be a whitening of the ground in those spots.
One thing that I want to add: On Thursday, if any of our precipitation moves in during the early morning hours around or before sunrise, it could start as a mix of sleet, snow, and freezing rain before changing over to all rain with temperatures pushing into the 40s. That would be more likely in the western and southern counties of Middle Tennessee. Right now, we are not anticipating that. We think the rain will come in after temps have warmed. But “over running” precip can sometimes slip in early, and that’s why I mention it. Jeff will be on “dark and early” as we say on News 2 This Morning starting at 4am.
Pictures From Last Night’s Winds, And A Few Thoughts
Matthew Rogers of White Bluff says they were lucky. Their cars only had minor scratches.
Sherry Fairris sent this picture from Manchester of a car that wasn’t so lucky.
The Dial Famiy in North Murfreesboro lost this 30 year old Willow tree (and a swing).
Pat Sensing in Waverly recorded this 48mph gust on his Davis Vantage Pro weather station.
Jerry Overcast (love his name) took this picture of a broken railroad crossing arm in Tullahoma.
Chad Marrs took found these uprooted cedar trees on Red Bank Road in northern Perry County.
Kristen Paton spotted these approaching storm clouds near I-65 and Peytonsville Road
Joy Stokes saw this rainbow that appeared before the evening storms (from earlier rains).
It was a pretty sunset before the storms. Picture by Valerie Shaver in Smyrna.
Joy in Greenbrier has a cat that is a loyal News 2 Weather viewer.
Thanks to everyone for the pictures. We can’t always post them all but we give as many as we can.
And now my thoughts on last night:
I noticed some comments criticizing the National Weather Service. As you may know, besides enhanced winds in the line of thunderstorms, there was a strong pressure gradient wind with the front. There was a High WInd Warning issued earlier in the afternoon for our western counties for 40 mph sustained winds with gusts to 58 mph. Then there was a High Wind Warning issued for most of the rest of Middle Tennessee (including Nashville) that I am posting below. This is in addition to the Severe Thunderstorm Warnings issued for many counties as the storm line went through.
I think they did a very good job. In addition, here on News 2, Lisa Patton did “cut ins” just about every commercial break during the event. I broadcasted live shots at 4, 4:30, 5, and 6pm talking about the anticipated winds.
Sunshine Today, Rain Back Tomorrow
We’ll enjoy lots of sunshine today- we’ll need it to get to the 40 degree range. Much colder today than the last few days. The winds turn to the north later this morning and dimish. Clouds right back in tonight with rain by tomorrow afternoon. Heavy rain likely across the south and southeast areas of middle Tennessee. As a strong low pressure system moves over we’ll also see some snow from this system as it pulls away. If there is any accumulating snow it will happen Friday morning with the favored areas (right now) being the western half of middle Tennessee. We’ll keep you posted…
Here is how wet Predictor shows tomorrow afternoon. We don’t expect severe weather. The heavy snow from this system will be in southern Missouri to the northeast.
Storm Prediction Center Upgrading Severe Weather Risk For Northwest and West Middle Tennessee Counties
Here is the latest from the Storm Prediction Center:
MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0103
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1021 AM CST TUE JAN 29 2008
AREAS AFFECTED…NERN AR…SE MO…SRN IL…WRN KY AND WRN TN
CONCERNING…OUTLOOK UPGRADE
VALID 291621Z - 291715Z
THE SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK IS BEING UPGRADED TO MODERATE RISK OVER
THE MID MS VALLEY INCLUDING THE STATES OF SRN IL…WRN KY…WRN TN
AND NERN AR. THE LATEST MODEL DATA INDICATE THE WIND SHEAR
ENVIRONMENT WILL BE FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE SQUALL-LINE DEVELOPMENT
ACROSS THE MID MS VALLEY WITH WIDESPREAD WIND DAMAGE AND A TORNADO
THREAT BEING LIKELY ACROSS THE MODERATE RISK AREA THIS AFTERNOON.
..BROYLES.. 01/29/2008
Read full Convective Outlook from the Storm Prediction Center.
