Halloween weather forecast is frightful for many: Rain, snow and cold predicted

An onslaught of rain, snow and cold will make for a frightful Halloween for many trick-or-treaters this Thursday, forecasters say.

A large storm system will bring soggy weather to much of the eastern U.S. on Halloween. Showers and thunderstorms are forecast from eastern Texas to the Southeast, Ohio Valley, mid-Atlantic and Northeast on Thursday, weather.com said.

Kids will have to break out the ponchos as rainy and miserable conditions are likely for Thursday evening from Alabama and the western part of the Florida Panhandle to Ohio, western and northern Pennsylvania, New York state, southeastern Michigan and New England, AccuWeather predicted.

Meanwhile, snow will give Halloween night a Christmasy feel in the Upper Midwest and western Great Lakes regions. Some of the major metro areas that are likely to be affected by at least some snow include Des Moines, Iowa; Madison, Wisconsin; and portions of Chicago and Milwaukee, AccuWeather said.

Three to 6 inches of snow is likely, with locally higher amounts and slushy roads and sidewalks.

Bone-chilling cold will be the story for Halloween revelers in the northern Rockies and northern and central Plains. Wind chills will dip into the teens and 20s in many areas.

Some of the best weather will be in portions of the Southeast and mid-Atlantic: "Mainly rain-free and mild conditions are anticipated from the Florida Peninsula to southeastern Virginia, southeastern Maryland and southern Delaware during Thursday evening," said Brett Anderson, AccuWeather senior meteorologist.

The Southwest also will enjoy mostly mild and dry weather.

In California, although the fiercest winds should be dying down by later Thursday, the threat for wildfires remains high. AccuWeather warned that conditions in some areas may not be safe or appropriate because of recent fire activity or the threat of existing fires advancing into some neighborhoods.

The weather over much of the northwestern U.S. will be fine for trick-or-treating, although certainly chillier than most Halloweens have been.

Meanwhile, in Fairbanks, Alaska, this could be the first snow-free Halloween in 79 years, according to climatologist Brian Brettschneider.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Halloween weather forecast: Rain, snow and cold for trick-or-treaters