Update 6:52 p.m.:
Here's the latest forecast from the National Weather Service for Darien, posted at 6:34 p.m.:
- Wednesday night: Rain, snow, and sleet, becoming all rain after 8pm. The rain could be heavy at times. Patchy fog. Temperature rising to around 44 by 5am. Windy, with a east wind 22 to 32 mph, with gusts as high as 55 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100 percent. Total nighttime snow and sleet accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
- Thursday: Rain, mainly before noon. Patchy fog before noon. High near 45. Northeast wind 9 to 18 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80 percent. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
Update 3:27 p.m.:
Snow's already falling.
Update 2:58 p.m.:
At 2 p.m. the state Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection issued this statement about the weather this afternoon, warning about a "moderate number of power outages" and snowfall beginning from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.:
"The combination of strong winds, some icing and some wet snow sticking to trees and powerlines is expected to result in a moderate number of power outages especially along the coast and also in Litchfield County.
"Minor to moderate coastal flooding is expected during high tide tonight at 11:00 PM and again Thursday morning at 10:30 AM in Western Long Island Sound."
Separately, the National Weather Service has a somewhat more specific forecast than earlier today, with "Snow and sleet likely before 4 p.m., then rain, snow, and sleet between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m., then snow and sleet after 5pm.
Here's the latest National Weather Service forecast for Wednesday and overnight Wednesday evening to Thursday, according to the 11:52 a.m. forecast update:
- Wednesday afternoon: Snow and sleet likely before 4pm, then rain, snow, and sleet between 4pm and 5pm, then snow and sleet after 5pm. High near 37. Breezy, with a east wind 22 to 24 mph, with gusts as high as 36 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90 percent. Total daytime snow and sleet accumulation of less than one inch possible.
- Wednesday night: Rain. The rain could be heavy at times. Temperature rising to around 43 by 4am. Windy, with a east wind 25 to 33 mph, with gusts as high as 55 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New precipitation amounts between 1 and 2 inches possible.
Update 12:59 p.m.:
Connecticut Light & Power says it's preparing in the following ways for the predictions for bad weather starting late Wednesday afternoon and into the night:
- Placing 100 percent of available lineworkers on-call
- Notifying employees with wires down and damage assessment storm roles to be ready to report for duty
- Notifying outside contractors of the potential for restoration work
Original article:
Mother Nature's going to be playing with her winter toys today, with the National Weather Service forecasting rain, snow and sleet, mainly after 4 p.m., along with a Coastal Flood Warning and a High Wind Warning.
So don't dawdle at those after-Christmas sales this afternoon. The good news is that, while you should have your snow shovel and salt ready (just in case!), it looks like any snow will be washed away by the rain. Quite a bit of rain, as a matter of fact.
Flooding, too
For those of you in low-lying areas along the shore, the weather service has upped its "Coastal Flood Watch," issued earlier, to a more serious "Coastal Flood Warning" from 8 p.m. to midnight, when the tide is highest. The warning is for western Long Island Sound, including Darien.
Tides should be 3 to 5 feet above normal and affect "vulnerable shore roads and/or basements."
Wind and gusts
For the New York metropolitan area, Long Island and coastal Connecticut, including Darien, the weather service's "High Wind Warning" is in effect from 4 p.m. this afternoon through 6 a.m. Thursday.
Forecasters say there could be winds of 25 to 40 mph and gusts of up to 60 mph.
"Winds of this magnitude will likely down trees and tree limbs, power lines and holiday decorations and cause minor property damage," according to the wind-warning forecast. "Power outages are possible. Driving high profile vehicles will be difficult, especially on elevated roadways and bridges.
Darien weather forecast
Here's what the National Weather Service predicts in its specific forecast for Darien:
The high temperature Wednesday should be a chilly 39, with breezy winds of 11 to 16 mph rising to 19-24 mph in the afternoon and winds gusting to as high as 36. The chance of precipitation is 100 percent, but the snow and sleet combination is less than half an inch.
Wednesday night the rain could be heavy and the temperature should dip to 35 degrees—not far from freezing (keep that in mind if it turns out to be colder than the forecast). We might get as much as 1 to 2 inches of rain.
Do you really want to be out in that weather tonight?
Here's the weather service for the rest of the week and the weekend:
- Thursday: Rain, mainly before noon. High near 46. East wind 15 to 18 mph becoming north in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90 percent. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
- Thursday night: A slight chance of rain before midnight. Mostly cloudy during the early evening, then gradual clearing, with a low around 30. Northwest wind 15 to 18 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20 percent.
- Friday: Sunny, with a high near 39. Northwest wind 10 to 15 mph.
- Friday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 25.
- Saturday: A slight chance of snow before noon, then a chance of rain and snow. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 36. Chance of precipitation is 30 percent.
- Saturday night: A chance of snow. Cloudy, with a low around 28. Chance of precipitation is 30 percent.
- Sunday: A chance of snow. Partly sunny, with a high near 33. Chance of precipitation is 40 percent.
- Sunday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 24.
