Midwest storm expected to bring more than a foot of now
Two people hold hands while walking south on Madison Street toward 27th Avenue in Bellevue, Neb., during a winter storm warning on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021.[Chris Machian/Omaha World-Herald via AP]
A major winter storm is expected to blanket a large swath of the middle of the country with snow Monday and disrupt travel as more than a foot of snow falls in some areas.
The Midwest snowfall was predicted to stretch from central Kansas northeast to Chicago and southern Michigan through the day, with some of the heaviest snow expected to fall in southeast Nebraska and western Iowa. Much of the rest of the area will receive at least 4 inches (10.2 centimeters) of snow.
National Weather Service meteorologist Taylor Nicolaisen said 10 to 15 inches (25.4 to 38.1 centimeters) of snow is likely between Lincoln, Nebraska, and Des Moines, Iowa, and it has been 15-20 years since most of that area received more than a foot of snow from a single storm.
“This is a historic snow,” said Nicolaisen, who is based near Omaha, Nebraska. “It has been a long time since we have seen somebody get a foot of snow in one storm. And we’re very confident that some people will see a foot of snow.”
Officials are urging people to stay off the roads during the storm, especially when the heaviest snow is expected in the afternoon and evening. Road conditions will worsen throughout Monday.
Elsewhere in the U.S., a storm moving across the Southwest on Monday and Tuesday will bring gusty winds and snowfall, the weather service said. Over the weekend, up to a foot of snow fell in Southern California’s mountains ahead of what was predicted to be a stronger storm.