Cold weather expected to return to area
From shorts Monday to hats and gloves today – the area is definitely skidding toward winter.
A rapid drop in temperatures overnight was expected to lead to snow throughout today and into tonight, said Lee Hendricks, a meteorologist from the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh.
“It’s going to be fairly brutal out there Tuesday through Tuesday night,” said Hendricks.
Residents, especially those living on the ridges of Washington, Westmoreland and Fayette counties, likely got their first taste of the impending winter, said Hendricks.
On the Chestnut and Laurel ridges and areas like Champion and Ohiopyle, weather forecasters expected about 1 inch of snow Monday night and for temperatures to drop to the mid-20s.
Today brings a 50% chance of more snow, with another 1-3 inches expected across the ridges. Temperatures will hover in the upper 20s with wind gusts up to 30 mph in the afternoon, Hendricks said.
Tonight, the NWS expects snow showers to continue, but it won’t lead to much additional accumulation. The temperatures, however, will continue to plummet into the teens overnight Tuesday and into Wednesday morning, Hendricks said.
The biting cold, however, won’t stick around too long.
Hendricks said temperatures will start to rebound later in the day Wednesday and he expects Thursday’s highs in the upper 30s and low 40s. Lows will be in the mid- to- upper 20s. And, by the weekend, Hendricks said, temperatures could return to the 40s or even 50s.