North Fork dodges significant snow, winter storm warning canceled

The winter storm warning has been canceled by the National Weather Service, which says we can expect perhaps another inch of accumulation before the last band of snow moves out of the area by about 8:30 this morning.

The snow that fell overnight did not stick to cement or paved surfaces because air temperatures did not get as cold as forecast and retained ground warmth, which melted the snow as it fell.

“This time of year, the cement retains the heat from the previous day’s sun, so it has trouble sticking, especially with marginal temperatures, right around freezing,” said Jay Engle, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service office in Upton.

“We expect a few more hours of light snow and it should be gone by about 8:30,” Engle said.

When the weather service saw that the snow accumulations would not reach the six-inch criteria for a winter storm warning, the agency canceled it. A winter weather advisory remains in effect until 10 a.m., according to the weather service.

The National Weather Service went back and forth with its forecast on the possible impacts of this storm, Engle said. Predictions about nor’easters are typically tricky.

“With a lot of nor’easters, we’re often on the edge,” he said. “And they typically have tight gradient. So they’re tricky.” With this storm, uncertainty about the speed of the storm complicated the forecast, he said. “The models had difficulty locking in on its track and timing.”

Temperatures will warm up to the mid- to upper-40s today and remain moderate the rest of this week.

Last night, with the winter storm warning in effect until 10 a.m. today, most area school districts last night announced a two-hour delayed opening.

A small craft advisory remains in effect from 5 p.m. this afternoon to 8 a.m. Tuesday, with northwest winds 10 to 20 kt with gusts up to 30 kt.