Old Man Winter refuses to allow for an early Spring.

Snow returns to the local forecast….the latest round predicted to arrive prior to midnight Wednesday and last through the majority of Thursday morning.

With the cold air in place, a weak low pressure system is expected to move northward along the North Carolina coast. That precipitation may begin as rain and turn into all snow later tonight and into Thursday morning. One to three inches is predicted, with locally higher amounts (up to four inches) forecasted in some areas.

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service office in Wakefield, Va. has placed three Roanoke-Chowan area counties (Bertie, Gates and Hertford) under a Winter Storm Watch. The NWS is predicting light snow and/or flurries to begin around 10 p.m. tonight (Wednesday) and continue through the late morning hours of Thursday. The heaviest snow will fall between 3 a.m. and 9 a.m. Thursday.

Temperatures will hover in the low 30’s during the snow event. Visibility will be reduced to a quarter mile or less at times.

Travel will also be impacted. Give yourself plenty of time to reach your destination and allow for extra distance between vehicles. Snow covered roads will cause slippery travel conditions, especially on bridges and overpasses.

Skies will clear by Thursday night where the low will fall into the mid-20’s.

Sunny skies are in the daytime forecast for Friday through Sunday. Friday’s high will be in the upper 40’s, warming into the 50’s Saturday and Sunday. Overnight lows during that period will range from 28 degrees on Friday to the low to mid-30’s over the weekend.