A shallow, cold air mass is settling in across the area. As rain falls in spots over the next several days, some of that will be in the form of freezing rain through Wednesday night.
Overview
Here’s a current look at winter weather alerts. If you’re under a Winter Storm Warning, avoid travel unless there is an emergency. If you’re under a Winter Weather Advisory, then use extreme caution on the roads.
Freezing rain forms when there is a layer of warm air just above the surface where precipitation falls as rain. Temperatures are below freezing at the surface, so the rain freezes on contact with the ground.
The farther northwest you go, the higher ice amounts we are expecting. Ice around a half an inch could knock down tree branches and powerlines.
Timing
We’ll see a few showers/freezing showers for the rest of Monday and Monday night, but rain will become more widespread on Tuesday. The freezing rain threat comes to an end by Wednesday afternoon, but plain rain will continue.
What to do?
Slow down on the roads, especially if the roads are wet and you know the temperature is at or below 32 degrees. Bridges and overpasses are first to freeze, so be especially cautious when driving over those.
Stay off the roads as much as you can. Do not accelerate or brake too quickly if you can avoid it, so make sure to leave plenty of space between you and the car in front of you. Leave plenty of time to come to a stop for a red light or stop sign.