More Midlands snow? Here’s the latest Columbia area forecast for tonight
Before last week, residents had waited five years to see snow falling in the S.C. Midlands. They may have a much shorter wait this time, as forecasters predict a possibility of snowfall in the region later Friday night.
The National Weather Service has issued winter weather advisories for northern portions of the Midlands, covering Chesterfield, Kershaw, Lancaster and Lee counties. That means some winter precipitation could begin falling between 9 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. Saturday, with the potential for up to an inch of snow on the ground.
But Lexington and Richland counties are unlikely to see as much of the winter stuff as last week, when 2 inches of snow accumulation was recorded at the Columbia Metropolitan Airport.
That’s partly because overnight temperatures are not expected to get anywhere near as cold as a week ago, said meteorologist Nicole Steeves with the National Weather Service office in Columbia.
“We’ll definitely have some flurries late, probably close to midnight,” Steeves said. “But once it falls, the surface temperature will be so warm, it may melt. Accumulation won’t be nearly as high as what we saw last week.”
Overnight temperatures in Columbia are projected to stay in the 40s and upper 30s. At most, the area could see up to a half-inch of snow on the ground. Because of the high temperature, the National Weather Service also isn’t projecting freezing rain for this evening.
The biggest danger for drivers could come early Saturday morning, when temperatures could drop to freezing and any precipitation could freeze into black ice on roadways. So drivers are advised to use caution if they travel in the morning.
The weather service’s morning briefing held out the possibility the winter weather advisory could expand to cover other counties in the region, depending on updated forecasts later in the day on Friday.
This story was originally published January 28, 2022 at 11:07 AM.
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