DETROIT – A winter storm is expected to hit Metro Detroit this weekend, including significant snowfall and major travel impacts.
Here’s everything to know about the impending snowstorm.
Friday weather
If you want to get some traveling or errands done, Friday is the day to do it ahead of Saturday’s snowfall.
There are some snow flurries on Friday morning, but nothing like what’s coming over the weekend.
Winds are fairly calm, around 10-15 mph. That’s not bad compared to the wind we’ve seen in Metro Detroit over the last couple of days. We’ll get some gusts of around 25 mph, but that’s still much lower than what we’ve been seeing.
The west side of the state is affected by lake-effect snow on Friday, with Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo getting some and parts of Upper Michigan getting much more.
Some of the Upper Peninsula has over a foot of snow.
Black Friday shopping will be cold. It was 26 degrees at 8 a.m. and will only get into the low 30s during the afternoon, with a high of around 34 degrees.
Friday night will be mostly clear.
4Warn Weather Alert
Local 4 has issued a 4Warn Weather Alert for both Saturday and Sunday because of an impending winter storm.
A 4Warn Weather Alert means we are expecting weather that will inconvenience our viewers.
The alert was issued because of the snow coming to Southeast Michigan on Saturday afternoon and evening. This isn’t lake-effect snow -- it’s your classic winter storm, with a closed area of low pressure.
What that means: If you have errands to run, Christmas shopping, or family gatherings, it would be best to do them on Black Friday or early Saturday.
On Saturday afternoon and evening, once the snowfall begins, roads are quickly going to deteriorate. Driving conditions are expected to be slick and dangerous.
This is a major travel weekend, and this winter storm is going to have a major impact on travel Saturday and Sunday morning.
Michigan-Ohio State game
If you’re headed to the Big House this weekend, you’ll make it through tailgating just fine, though temperatures will be below freezing.
Winds will start to pick up in the afternoon, and that will drop wind chills to the teens and low 20s, even though the official temperature might be around freezing.
After about 3 p.m. is when snow is expected to start moving in. So it’s likely only going to be a factor for the very end of the game, if at all.
Travel home after the game could get tricky, depending when you leave. We’re expecting driving conditions to deteriorate quickly once the snow begins.
Saturday snow timeline
The impact to travel on Saturday will be high across Michigan and much of the Great Lakes region.
But there is time to get out in the morning, if you have to. We aren’t expecting the snow to begin until around 3 p.m. Saturday.
The primary window for heavy snowfall is from 6 p.m. Saturday to 2 a.m. Sunday.
Snow could continue into the early parts of Sunday morning.
Sunday weather forecast
Most of the snow will have already fallen by the time you wake up on Sunday morning, but the road conditions could still be tricky.
But the rest of the day shouldn’t be much of an issue.
Temperatures are expected to top out in the mid-30s, with lows below freezing.
How much snow to expect
Once the weekend is all said and done, we’re expecting parts of Metro Detroit will have gotten 4-6 inches of snow.
This will depend on where you are, and there’s still some fine-tuning to do with this forecast, but it appears the area will see some accumulation on Saturday evening into Sunday.
Expect to have around 1-2 inches by 7:30 or 8 p.m. Saturday. But by the time you wake up Sunday, that’s when most of the snow will have fallen.
Specifically, the eastern part of our area is likely to see 3-5 inches of snow, while the western parts -- like Ann Arbor and Adrian -- have a chance to see a little more than that 4-6 inches.
More about Saturday’s weather forecast
Temperatures Saturday will only top out in the 30s, and it’s going to be blustery and cold.
It’s likely we will get a winter weather advisory or a winter storm watch by the end of the day Friday for Saturday.
Travel problems
There aren’t any travel issues because of the weather on Friday, but we’re expecting that to change throughout the day on Saturday.
Saturday afternoon is when the travel problems are expected to begin.
Sunday’s not as bad of a travel day -- the morning will be affected, but the afternoon and evening should be in pretty good shape in terms of road travel.
What’s happening west of us
Travel to the West side of the state is very messy right now because there’s ice and lake-effect snow.
There are winter weather advisories and winter storm warnings along Lake Michigan, in some spots. That will be an issue Saturday and into Sunday, too.
Winter storm warnings are currently popping up in Wisconsin and near Chicago because an area of low pressure.