'Hunker down': See snow forecast as states in Midwest, East hit with winter storm
People in over a dozen states across the Midwest and East are expected to see "heavy snowfall" from a disruptive winter storm this weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
A winter storm developed across the Central Plains and will impact over 60 million people across over a dozen states from Saturday night through Monday evening, according to the NWS.
Areas have been bracing for the storm since Friday, which could affect students' return to school in 2025.
People should expect "extremely" cold temperatures throughout the rest of the week, Tom Johnstone, a meteorologist with the NWS in Wilmington, Ohio, told Paste BN.
"Over a dozen states are forecast to be impacted by one or more aspects of this storm," according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Brandon Buckingham.
Governors in Kentucky and West Virginia both declared states of emergency ahead of the storm.
When did the winter storm hit?
The storm began to impact Central Plains late Saturday, according to NWS. Sunday, the storm will travel to Ohio Valley, "where severe travel disruptions are expected. The storm will then track into the Mid-Atlantic Sunday night and into Monday."
Areas in the storm's path are expected to receive between 8 to 14 inches of snow, according to the NWS.
Cincinnati, Ohio snow forecast
Kansas City, Missouri snow forecast
St. Louis, Missouri snow forecast
Indianapolis, Indiana snow forecast
Louisville, Kentucky snow forecast
West Virginia snow forecast
Which states are affected by the snow storm?
Parts of the following states are expected to be affected by the snowstorm this weekend, according to the NWS:
- Nebraska
- Kansas
- Iowa
- Missouri
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Kentucky
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Washington, D.C.
- Delaware
- Virginia
- West Virginia
National Snow forecast
National weather radar
How to prepare for the snowstorm
People who haven't left their homes yet should "hunker down" where they are over the next 48 hours, Johnstone advised.
"It's getting bad," he said. "We're seeing a lot of accidents that have occurred already."
People should also be prepared for extremely cold weather for the rest of the week, he said.
When will conditions improve?
By Tuesday, people should be able to leave home and resume their lives as they normally would, Johnstone said.
Contributing: John Bacon, Paste BN
Julia is a trending reporter for Paste BN. You can connect with her on LinkedIn, follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, Instagram and TikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at jgomez@gannett.com