ALERT DAY: Winter Storm Watch for Tuesday night until Wednesday afternoon. Blizzard conditions possible

A **WINTER STORM WATCH** has been issued for 9:00 PM on Tuesday until 3:00 PM on Wednesday with an **ALERT DAY** also in the Tuesday night to Wednesday time period.

A strong late-season storm system will impact the entire Weather First area Tuesday and Wednesday bringing rain, snow and strong gusty winds.

A few light showers will be possible late Monday night into Tuesday with rain chances increasing by late afternoon into the evening before switching to snow sometime late Tuesday evening mainly in the 9:00 PM to Midnight timeframe.

This system will have a lot of moisture to work with so rainfall amounts around 0.50″ to 1″ are possible for much of the area. Considering the ground is still frozen, there will likely be some ponding with additional rainfall acting as runoff into streams and rivers as the ground won’t be able to absorb as much.

Rain switches to snow on Tuesday evening into the overnight hours on Wednesday as the center of the system tracks south of the area from approximately Kansas City to Milwaukee, putting the Weather First area on the cold, wintry side of the system. Periods of heavy snow will be possible with snowfall rates up to 1″/per hour at times.

The wind will also be strong with gusts of 40-50 mph at times likely leading to blowing snow and low visibility resulting in slippery roads and hazardous travel conditions.

Snow will gradually wind down through Wednesday morning into the early afternoon hours.

Snowfall amounts and location are still a bit uncertain at this time due to variability on some storm specifics, but amounts of 5-9″ or more is possible for some.

Expect more details to come.