Snow? Staunton area could see first winter weather event Saturday

STAUNTON — The first snow of 2024 could happen before the week is out. Accuweather's Joe Lundberg said a storm system could produce snow Saturday, Jan. 6, beginning that morning and lasting throughout most the day into early Saturday night.

"It looks like it's going to be mostly snow for the Staunton area," Lundberg said.

He called the projected snowfall "significant," saying it could be six inches or more for this area.

"Exact amounts, this far away, we haven't come to an exact decision on what is the most likely amount," Lundberg said. "But it's certainly going to cause some travel disruptions."

The Accuweather forecast, at this point, only says "colder with snow much of the time," with temperatures not even getting above freezing with a high of 31 and a low of 26 on Saturday. It looks like the snow should be out of the area by late Saturday night or early Sunday morning with temperatures warming to the low 40s by Sunday.

Lundberg said some rain is likely early next week, possibly with some snow and ice at the frontend of that system before becoming all rain.

"There's the potential for some heavy rain," he said, projecting Tuesday, Jan. 9, as the day we may see that system. "The silver lining is we've been in this drought so we need the precipitation any way we can get it. Hopefully it doesn't cause any flooding, but this should help alleviate the drought conditions we've had through 2023."

The last couple of winters have been relatively mild in the Shenandoah Valley, but Lundberg said that could change this winter. He said the projections were for a quiet December but more active in the heart of the winter season.

"There will be more of an opportunity for colder air to come in," he said. "Which means if any one of those storms goes by and there's enough cold air around we've got an opportunity for snow. That's what we're seeing for this system Saturday."

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— Patrick Hite is a reporter at The News Leader. Story ideas and tips always welcome. Contact Patrick (he/him/his) at phite@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @Patrick_Hite. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com

This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Snow in the forecast for Staunton area this weekend