Snow for Tuesday, but how Much?

Those who watch and report on Washington-area winter weather say Tuesday’s forecast of up to five inches of snow is a bit excessive.

The Capital Weather Gang at the Washington Post posted to their Facebook page early Tuesday afternoon that the thought of that much snow falling tomorrow, on the heels of this morning’s ice storm, could be snow-lovers’ wishful thinking.

“I think the 5?+ assessment is aggressive, not because it’s impossible, but because it’s a “boom” (high-end) scenario – rather than the most likely scenario. Having said that, I don’t want to be overly critical of NWS as the storm will be coming in around rush hour and could have a high impact. It’s a borderline Winter Storm Watch situation, overall,” stated the Weather Gang.

Overall, we’re probably in for more winter weather on Tuesday. Areas like Prince William, Manassas, Manassas Park, and Fairfax to the north are all under a winter storm watch, according to the National Weather Service. There is currently no watch or advisory posted for Stafford County where snow totals could be light to non-existent tomorrow.

Tuesday’s forecast goes like this:

— Snow and freezing rain likely after 4 a.m. through noon

— It’ll be cold with high temperatures in the low 30s

— There will be three to five inches of snow possible, according to the National Weather Service

— Things clear up for Tuesday night

— Wednesday will be sunny and cold

While the last few winters around here have been mild, this early winter has already proven more active than years’ past. In fact, our bout with snow and ice this past weekend actually came earlier in the month of December than the “North American Blizzard” storm that walloped the east coast in 2009, bringing several feet of snow to the Mid-Atlantic cities the weekend of Dec. 19.

On average, the Washington area sees 15 inches of snow per year. And, the big snow storms are usually the ones that form over the Gulf of Mexico and head north up the east coast.

So, with the threat of more winter weather, it’s probably a good idea to keep the numbers to these electric utilities handy:

Dominion Virginia Power: 1-866-DOM-HELP (366-4357) or www.dom.com

NOVEC: 1-888-335-0500 Rappahannock Electric Cooperative: 1-800-552-3904

Northern Neck Electric Cooperative: 1-866-NNEC-OUT (663-2688)