Cumberland County sees nearly 5 inches of snow in some areas Saturday

Friday night's snowstorm left up to nearly 5 inches of snow in some areas of Cumberland County.

According toNick Luchetti, meteorologist with the National Weather Service, Raleigh, Cumberland County experienced between 3 to 4.7 inches of snow. The Fayetteville area saw some of the higher accumulation totals in the area, he said.

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Luchetti attributed the snowfall to a cold air and a low-pressure system.

Related: PHOTOS: Reader-submitted photos of snow in the Fayetteville area

"Essentially we had an arctic cold front come through the night before. We had like a dusting, coating of snow across the Piedmont. It was mostly rain but then the cold air started kind of behind it that caused a little dusting Thursday night and then that settled offshore," he said. "Then what happened was (Friday) a low-pressure system essentially developed along that front offshore and because North Carolina had really cold, dry air in place because of the front that had moved in the previous day, that's what allowed snow to develop."

Related: Live weather updates: Fayetteville blanketed with snow Saturday morning

Commonly, the Fayetteville area temperature generally has a high in the mid 50s and a low in the mid 30;s but today the area is expected to see a high in the 30s and a low in the teens to low 20s.

The last time the Fayetteville area saw a big storm was Dec. 25 to Dec. 26, 2010, when there were reports of more than 6 inches, according to Luchetti.

Staff writer Akira Kyles can be reached at akyles@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Friday's weather left Cumberland County with nearly 5 inches of snow