CUMBERLAND — On the heels of a gusty afternoon and evening with a cold frontal passage, Mother Nature has another trick up her sleeve to kick-start the weekend.
A storm system sweeping into the Rockies will follow the Interstate 70 corridor into the Ohio Valley Friday evening and then push across Western Maryland and the Potomac Highlands overnight into early Saturday.
On Friday, flurries will start between 3 and 6 p.m. in Garrett County and 4 and 7 p.m. for the remainder of the region before consolidating into a heavy, powdery snow by 9-10 p.m. Roads will likely become snow covered by late Friday evening, with snow ending by daybreak.
Total accumulation will reach about 3 inches in downtown Cumberland with 4-7 inches for the remainder of the region. Travel will be likely be slippery through Saturday morning before road crews get around to clearing all the streets. Saturday will be a brisk and windy day with peak gusts reaching 30 mph. Blowing and drifting snow is likely in the mountains. Sunday will also be gusty with peak winds reaching 35-40 mph but temperatures will begin a moderating trend.
In the long run, there is a strong signal for February to end and March to begin with well-above average temperatures as a major pattern shift occurs.
The late week snow follows on the heels of the pre-Valentine’s Day storm that blanketed parts of the region with 2 to 5 inches of snow accumulation. Following this storm, Cumberland will be right on cue with average February snowfall, which is 7.7 inches.