After a couple days of unseasonably spring-like weather, conditions are about to change – in a big way.

 

According to the National Weather Service out of Charleston, the immediate area is under a winter weather advisory starting at 4 p.m. today and continuing through 10 a.m. Saturday.

 

A period of sleet and freezing rain early this evening will transition to all snow tonight with two to three inches of snow and sleet possible, said Bridgeport Emergency Services Director Laura Pysz

 

As temperatures plummet, a flash freeze is possible late tonight. with enough ice accumulation to make surfaces very slick. The icy layer beneath snow could potentially create especially hazardous conditions.

 

Be prepared for significant travel impacts late tonight into Saturday morning.

 

WDTV Meteorologist Jessica Pash broke it all down, advising what to expect hour by hour.

 

Today’s high temperature will peak around 2 p.m., reaching a balmy 68 degrees, she said.

 

“But a cold front will move through later this afternoon and temperatures will plummet very quickly; by sunset dropping into the 40s and by midnight to freezing,” Pash said. “After that, it will drop down into the lower 20s for overnight lows.”

A break in precipitation won’t last long.

 

“I see rain moving across the Ohio River on our radar and that will all reach here at about 2:30 or 3 p.m.,” Pash said. “We’ll see more rain back in the area with periods of rain the rest of the evening. But once temperatures drop off – by about 10 or 11 p.m. – we’ll see a mix of sleet and freezing rain by midnight to 1 a.m., then all of that will change over to snow.”

 

Two to four inches of snow is expected for the lowlands; basically, everyone west of the mountains.

 

“The mountains will see even less accumulation this time as moisture will dissipate and there won’t be enough after the cold front moves through,” she said. “They will only see an inch or two.”

 

Pash said flooding was this morning’s big concern and that concern will carry over into the approaching weather system.

 

“We still had snow that was melting. That with last night’s heavy rain caused some flooding concerns last night into earlier this morning,” she said. “Roads and the ground are very saturated already and cannot take any more rain.”

Tonight’s plummeting temperatures will result in a flash freeze that could result in slick spots and black ice overnight and into Saturday.

 

Temperatures will not climb above freezing on Saturday, Pash said.