SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) – Happy Saturday, Utah! Our short-lived break from wet weather comes to a close today as our next storm system moves in from the West.
This will be the first in a series of troughs, or areas of low pressure, that will sweep through Utah and provide active skies and periods of precipitation. For the first part of our day, clouds will increase with a strong southerly breeze, which will allow for above-average daytime highs and mild conditions. Conditions will shift by the evening and overnight as wet weather spreads across the state, starting as valley rain and mountain snow. The best chance for wet weather across the entire state will be between late Saturday and early on Sunday. With a cold front coming through, temperatures will start to trend down by Sunday and with lingering moisture behind the front, there’s a chance we see the valley rain transition to snow, mainly in our northern and central valleys.
When it comes to accumulations, anything significant in our valleys looks unlikely, but if we get the changeover early, then a few inches will be possible as benches could see anywhere from a trace to four inches. It’s a different story for mountains and mountain valleys, where temperatures will allow for a straight snow event. As a result, we have winter weather alerts posted and going into effect at 11 a.m. today. A Winter Storm Warning for all of Utah’s mountains will be in effect through Sunday before noon. Winter travel conditions and heavy, accumulating snow is expected. Mountains will pick up anywhere from 8-16″ throughout the state, with the Cottonwoods looking at an additional one to two feet! The Winter Weather Advisory covers the Wasatch Back and Ogden Valley where 5-10″ of snow is expected and tricky travel can be expected.
Wet weather will wind down from Sunday afternoon into Sunday night even though we won’t completely eliminate the chance for isolated showers. While a break is possible late Sunday into early Monday, active weather is expected to ramp back up by Martin Luther King Day on Monday with the arrival of another storm system. There’s also a chance we see another system by the second half of the workweek. With colder air in place, Thursday’s storm could bring straight snow to the valleys and mountains.
Be sure to stay tuned as we continue to fine tune the forecast leading up to another stretch of active weather! Always stay one step ahead of the weather with Utah’s Most Accurate forecast both on-air and online! We are Good4Utah!
