MANCHESTER WEATHER UPDATE: Steady Snow to Fall During Tonight's Evening Commute

By Brian McCready (Patch Staff)

Today’s the first day of spring and of course snow will begin falling soon and be at its heaviest for the evening commute home from work.

The National Weather Service has issued a “Hazardous Weather Outlook” for Hartford and Tolland Counties for the possibility of 1-2 inches of snow.

The weather service has issued a “Winter Weather Advisory” for Fairfield, New Haven, Middlesex, and New London counties, which is in effect until early Saturday. For those counties, total of 2-5 inches of snow is predicted to accumulate.

The weather service predicts hazardous travel conditions are possible due to reduced visibilities and slippery roads.

WTNH News 8 Meteorologist Gil Simmons writes that snow begins between 12-3 p.m. and more snow will accumulate at the Connecticut shoreline.

He predicts 2-4 inches of snow for Fairfield County and most of New Haven County, but only 1-2 inches of snow for the rest of the state.

NBC Connecticut predicts snow will be at its peak intensity for the afternoon commute home from work, and a total of 2-4 inches of snow for the entire state.

The latest Manchester-specific forecast from the National Weather Service (as of the10:53 a.m. update):

• Friday afternoon: Snow, mainly after 2pm. High near 35. Southeast wind 3 to 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.
• Friday night: Snow, mainly before 11pm. Low around 25. Northeast wind 3 to 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of less than one inch possible.
• Saturday: A slight chance of snow showers before 9am, then a slight chance of rain showers after 5pm. Cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with a high near 44. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
• Saturday night: Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly clear, with a low around 24. Northwest wind 3 to 8 mph.
• Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 35. Northwest wind 7 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph.
• Sunday night: Mostly clear, with a low around 16.
• Monday: Sunny, with a high near 35.
• Monday night: Mostly clear, with a low around 19.
• Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 42.
• Tuesday night: Mostly clear, with a low around 24.
• Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 48.
• Wednesday night: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 34. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
• Thursday: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 53. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Photo by cogdogblog, via flickr creative commons