SOME SNOW AND RAIN IS EXPECTED IN EASTERN VIRGINIA... HOWEVER, CURRENT INDICATIONS ARE THAT HAMPTON ROADS WILL DODGE THE BULLET ON THIS STORM... THE C

After Thursday's traffic gridlock caused by snow that I experienced first hand, I was relieved to see that the potential for a major east coast storm this weekend has basically fizzled. At least that's how it looks right now. A weak area of low pressure will slide to our south and the way it looks now, we will only see a little light rain here in Hampton Roads possibly mixed with some snowflakes or sleet. No accumulation is expected in Hampton Roads. However, there may be a narrow band of accumulating snow to our north and west. The challenge to forecasters is that the northern edge of the precipitation shield will be just to our north where it should be cold enough for some wintry precipitation. Could something change and bring a major snowfall to Hampton Roads? It doesn't seem likely. However, I do get a bit nervous when low pressure areas move to our south and there is plenty of cold air in place. But the timing of the various factors that go into creating a major winter storm is just not right according to forecasters. Either way, we should have improving weather on Sunday as the system moves out to sea. The week ahead looks cold and there might be some precipitation during the mid-week period. Right now, that system doesn't seem that potent, but stay tuned. I'll have an update on Sunday morning. I wanted to give kudos to the local meteorologists on Thursday's snowfall. I think that they did an excellent job predicting that storm. They accurately predicted the timing of the precipitation and the precipitation type for the most part. The Hampton Road's school districts made the right decision to close schools.