NEWS

Ice is gone but snow is on the way to Morris County

Staff and wire reports

Hard on the heels of a surprise ice storm, the forecast for Wednesday predicts about three inches of snow that could make the evening commute a tricky one.

The National Weather Service says that here is a chance of snow after 2 p.m. with up to 2 inches falling before dark and then another inch possible at night.

The temperature should be in the low 30s during the daytime but it will drop noticeably after dark, falling as low as 19 with the wind blowing at 3 to 8 mph. The possibility of snow remains in the forecast Thursday morning but clears out after that.

The snowstorm will likely be the most significant in New Jersey since November, said Kristin Kline, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service Mount Holly Office.

Snowfall totals are subject to change as new weather model runs emerge, she stressed.

Kline said this system will drop down from Canada, reaching the Ohio Valley area by Tuesday night and then sliding to our south on Wednesday and off the mid-Atlantic coast later that day.

The storm may have the most impact Wednesday evening, as it looks like most of the precipitation will fall in the late afternoon and into the evening, she said.

The storm follows a dangerous day for Sunday driving in New Jersey, with more than 400 accidents reported by State Police.

Kline said Sunday's freezing rain "I guess in a way overperformed." The cold air lingered longer than forecasters expected and the rain arrived a little sooner than anticipated, leading to more freezing rain than expected, she said.

For the upcoming storm, Kline recommended that people keep abreast of the latest forecasts and "maybe plan on a few extra minutes for that Wednesday evening commute."

"Don't be in too much of a hurry to get home from work," she said. "Just take your time."