Blizzard Warning Now Issued For West Haven

By Brian McCready

New data released Monday morning continues to show a powerful Nor’easter will impact Connecticut all day Tuesday and a Blizzard Warning has now been issued for several parts of the state.

The track of the storm has changed a bit from Sunday and now areas along the coast of Middlesex and New London counties may see a mix to some sleet on Tuesday, which could limit accumulation there. It also appears areas north and west in Connecticut will see the most snow and in some cases up to 2 feet of snow is possible.

The National Weather Service issued a Blizzard Warning for Fairfield and New Haven counties and for interior sections of Middlesex and New London counties. A Winter Storm Warning is in effect for the rest of the state.

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NBC Connecticut Meteorologist Ryan Hanrahan wrote, “The European model keying in on northwestern Connecticut and the Catskills as the most likely locations to see over 18" of snow. We concur with this. There is still a risk for 18"+ for Hartford/New Haven but it is a bit lower... maybe 20% chance.”

WTNH News 8 Meteorologist Gil Simmons wrote, “Cold and sunny weather for today! Plan on blizzard conditions tomorrow. That means heavy snow and strong winds. The roughest weather will be moving through between 8 AM and 8 PM. Strong winds expected to continue overnight until early Wednesday.”

Simmons said the snow gets going between 4 a.m. and 7 a.m. Tuesday and he’s predicting a 15-inch accumulation average for the state and some spots could see 25 inches. He said the southeast portion of the state may receive less because of the potential for mixing. Simmons adds that power outages are possible as winds could gust up to 60 mph, especially late Tuesday.

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Snow Accumulation Estimates Via The National Weather Service

The weather service says coastal areas of Fairfield and New Haven counties along with areas of northern Middlesex and New London counties can expect 12 to 20 inches of snow with the highest amounts to the north and west. Snowfall rates of 2 to 4 inches per hour are expected early Tuesday morning and into early Tuesday afternoon.

Winds will gust between 40 and 55 mph, which is the reason why a Blizzard Warning has been issued.

Interior sections of Fairfield and New Haven counties are expected to receive 18 to 24 inches of snow accumulation and wind gusts up to 40 mph at times.

Communities at the coast in Middlesex and New London counties can expect 8 to 14 inches of snow and winds could gust up to 60 mph on Tuesday. It’s expected there will be a mix to some sleet, which would lower snow accumulations.

Hartford and Tolland counties can expect snow to accumulate 12 to 18 inches and the snow develops between 5 a.m. and 7 a.m. Tuesday. It will snow at rates of 2 to 4 inches per hour Tuesday afternoon. Winds could gust up to 40 mph at times.

And whatever snow falls Tuesday, it will likely stick around for a bit as temps won’t really warm up above freezing until the weekend when it may reach 40 degrees.

File photo by Tim Jensen