Frank Rondel
A widespread winter storm, named Winter Storm Fern by The Weather Channel, is set to impact millions across the United States from Friday through Monday, bringing potentially damaging ice and heavy snowfall from New Mexico and Texas to parts of New England, reports customreceipt.com via The Weather Company. Authorities have issued winter storm watches from New Mexico into the Southeast, with warnings expected in areas most at risk for ice and snow accumulation. Forecasters indicate that more than 180 million people, over half the U.S. population, could experience hazardous winter conditions during this storm.
The storm will begin affecting the Plains by late morning on Friday, bringing snow, sleet, and freezing rain to regions including Kansas, Oklahoma, northern and western Texas, parts of Arkansas, and possibly western Tennessee and northern Mississippi. Key cities in the initial path include Lubbock, Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and Little Rock. By Friday night, the storm will continue to move southward into the Southern Plains and the lower Mississippi Valley, while spreading east into the Tennessee Valley and Appalachian regions, reaching parts of Virginia and the Carolinas. Cities such as Albuquerque, Dallas, Austin, Shreveport, Memphis, Nashville, Huntsville, and Asheville may be affected.
Saturday will see snow and ice extending farther south into Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi, while northern areas including Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Virginia, and parts of the Carolinas experience increased wintry precipitation. Saturday night, the system may advance toward southeast Texas, southwestern Louisiana, central Mississippi, northeast Georgia, and South Carolina. Snow and ice are expected to reach the mid-Atlantic states while also intensifying in the Midwest. Cities potentially affected include Houston, Dallas, Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Little Rock, Shreveport, Jackson, Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, Charlotte, Greenville-Spartanburg, Columbia, Richmond, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and New York City.
By Sunday, winter precipitation will diminish in Texas, Oklahoma, and the lower Mississippi Valley, but continue from the Ohio Valley to the Virginia and Carolinas piedmonts and into the Northeast. Some areas, including the Ohio Valley and parts of the Northeast, may see heavy snowfall, and snow and wind could persist into Monday morning before conditions improve.
The storm is expected to bring significant ice accumulations across a broad portion of the South, from Texas to the Carolinas. Ice buildup may make roads impassable and accumulate on trees and power lines, causing damage and potential outages lasting hours or days. The exact line between rain and freezing rain remains uncertain, depending on how far north warmer air advances.
Snowfall is anticipated from New Mexico, northern Texas, and Oklahoma eastward, with the highest potential along the I-95 corridor from Washington, D.C., to Philadelphia, New York City, and southern New England. Dangerous travel conditions are expected in these areas, and flight delays or cancellations may occur, particularly Sunday and Monday, at major East Coast hubs.
The arrival of Arctic air will intensify the impacts, potentially setting daily cold records in the South, Midwest, and East. Following the storm, daytime temperatures may remain below freezing in ice-affected areas until Monday or Tuesday, with nighttime lows in the single digits, teens, or 20s. Melting snow or ice during daylight may refreeze overnight, prolonging slippery travel conditions into early next week.
Winter Storm Fern is developing under the convergence of two main factors: a strong Arctic high over the Great Lakes delivering cold air to much of the South and a storm system moving east from the Southwest that carries moisture northward. This combination is producing conditions favorable for widespread winter weather across a large portion of the United States.
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