NYC Weather: Winter Storm Could Now Hit With 17 Inches Of Snow

NEW YORK CITY – A winter storm watch has been issued as forecasters now ready for as much as 17 inches set to blanket the city starting Wednesday afternoon. The expected total was increased by the National Weather Service from a foot late Monday.

The storm watch goes into effect at 4 p.m. Wednesday afternoon and warns that travel could become impossible.

"Heavy snow possible," it says. "Some sleet could mix in late Wednesday night. Total snow accumulations of 8 to 14 inches possible. Winds could gust as high as 50 mph."

The daily forecast, however, says up to 2 inches could fall Wednesday, 12 overnight and another 3 on Thursday.

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"Travel could be very difficult to impossible," the watch continues. "The hazardous conditions could impact the morning or evening commute. Gusty winds could bring down tree branches."

This would be the first major storm to hit New York City in a couple of years. The heaviest snowfall of 2019 was only 2.1 inches, which hit on January 18 – which was also the last accumulation of the season, according to Weather.com.

Here's the forecast in more detail, courtesy of the NWS:

Tuesday
Sunny, with a high near 38. Wind chill values between 25 and 35. Northwest wind 7 to 9 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.

Tuesday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 27. North wind around 7 mph.

Wednesday
Snow, mainly after 4pm. High near 33. Wind chill values between 20 and 25. Northeast wind 9 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.

Wednesday Night
Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. Steady temperature around 32. Wind chill values between 15 and 20. Windy, with a northeast wind 22 to 31 mph, with gusts as high as 43 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 8 to 12 inches possible.

Thursday
Snow likely before noon, then a chance of snow showers, mainly between noon and 3pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 33. Windy, with a north wind 25 to 30 mph decreasing to 18 to 23 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Thursday Night
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 25.

Friday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 36.