WEATHER UPDATE: Snow's 'Big Impact' on Tuesday Evening Commute in Manchester

By Brian McCready (Patch Staff)

You might want to sneak out of work a little early today, probably by 4 p.m. just to be on the safe side.

And while you’re at it, you might want to call out in advance for Thursday, where more than six inches of snow is possible late Wednesday into Thursday afternoon.

Yes, more snow is forecast for tonight’s commute home from work, as snow is expected to begin falling around 4 p.m. and be relatively heavy in intensity, before it changes to ice late Tuesday, and then some light rain showers on Wednesday.

The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for the entire state of Connecticut from 3 p.m. today until 10 a.m. Wednesday.

A total of 2 to 4 inches are expected, but what has prominent Connecticut meteorologists concerned is the icing that is going to occur, and could make Wednesday morning’s commute “treacherous,” writes WFSB 3 TV Meteorologist Scott Haney.

And the ride home from work tonight won’t be a walk in the park, either.

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NBC Connecticut Meteorologist Bob Maxon predicts snow begins tonight after 4 p.m. and it will have a “big impact on the evening commute.”

WTNH News 8 Meteorologist Gil Simmons writes that it will be a “very rough commute” home tonight, and “snow and dangerous freezing rain and sleet” will impact Wednesday morning’s commute.

Simmons predicts snow could begin falling by 4 p.m. in Western Connecticut and by 6 p.m. in Eastern Connecticut.

As for Thursday’s potential snowstorm?

“I may have to go into hiding if current guidance verifies Thursday. Models aggressive with moisture plume & cold air Thursday morning,” Simmons wrote on Facebook.

NBC Connecticut Meteorologist Brad Field wrote on Facebook “thinking late Wednesday night/Thursday snow could be substantial...still a bit too early to be more certain…”

Here’s the latest Manchester-specific forecast (as of 9:53 a.m.) from the National Weather Service:

• Tuesday: A chance of snow, mainly after 4pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 29. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Total daytime snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
• Tuesday night: Snow, freezing rain, and sleet, becoming all freezing rain after 1am. Patchy fog between 10pm and 4am. Low around 27. South wind 6 to 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow and sleet accumulation of 2 to 4 inches possible.
• Wednesday: A chance of rain or freezing rain before noon, then a chance of rain. Patchy fog between 10am and noon. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 42. Southwest wind 5 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
• Wednesday night: A chance of rain, snow, and sleet before 11pm, then snow and sleet likely between 11pm and midnight, then snow likely after midnight. Patchy fog between 11pm and 4am. Patchy freezing fog after 4am. Otherwise, cloudy, with a low around 22. Northwest wind 5 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New snow and sleet accumulation of 2 to 4 inches possible.
• Thursday: Snow likely, mainly before 10am. Patchy fog between 7am and 1pm. Patchy freezing fog before 7am. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 24. Northwest wind around 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
• Thursday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 5.

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