MILWAUKEE – A Winter Storm Watch has been posted for all of southeast Wisconsin from 6 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 22 through 6 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 24. A blizzard is likely across the area.
Monitor the FOX6 Weather Experts forecast for frequent updates.
Forecast breakdown
Timeframe: Light snow Wednesday night into Thursday morning. Snow really picks up during the day Thursday into the afternoon. Several inches of snow possible Thursday, BUT the strong winds don’t arrive until after 6pm Thursday. Blizzard conditions Thursday night through Friday night. “Ground blizzard” on Saturday.
Amounts: In excess of 6″ of snow across the area, with over 12″ possible in spots.
Snow Type: This snow could start out as the wetter variety on Thursday but quickly become fluffy late Thursday night into Friday.
Impacts: Travel will be nearly impossible later Thursday night into Friday. The strong winds continue on Saturday with blowing ground snow. Bitter cold air spills in on Friday with wind chills as low as -25 Friday night & Saturday morning.
A blizzard is defined as heavy snow with wind gusts of 35mph or greater and reduced visibility to 0.25 mi. or less for three hours or more. The last Blizzard Warning in SE WI (Walworth, Racine & Kenosha Co.) was in 2018. The last Blizzard Warning for Milwaukee county was 2011.
The wind will really pick up Thursday night into Friday creating these blizzard conditions. Expect significant travel delays both by air and car on Thursday evening and Friday. If you have plans to travel by air, stay up to date with your airline. It is possible to see interstate closers in parts of the upper Midwest Thursday night and Friday.
2pm Thursday. Lighter winds but snow picks up.
10pm Thursday. Windy and very snowy.
Noon Friday. Blizzard Conditions
Stay weather aware
Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:
FOX6 Storm Center app
FOX6 News app
FOX Weather app
MAPS AND RADAR
We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.
SCHOOL AND BUSINESS CLOSINGS
When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.
