LITTLE ROCK — For the first time in more than 80 years, some Arkansans will see a truly white Christmas.
National Weather Service forecasters said a winter storm system coming from the Plains will dump up to 10 inches of snow in some areas of Arkansas today.
Oh, sure, a dusting of snow has fallen on the state during the holiday eight times since the National Weather Service began keeping records in 1875 - snow was already on the ground from previous snows three other times - but the last large snowstorm on Christmas Day happened in Arkansas in 1926.
The prediction has airport officials, utility repairmen, highway crews - even snowshovel salesmen - scurrying in preparation across the state.
Forecasters at the National Weather Service in North Little Rock predict the northwest half of the state couldsee 3 to 6 inches of snowfall by late tonight. Some areas in the hills of northern Arkansas could receive up to 10 inches, said meteorologist Julie Lesko in North Little Rock.
“It’s significant,” she said of the updated forecast. “Anytime you have 3 to 6 inches of snow in the forecast, it’s significant.”
A band of the state from Texarkana to Pine Bluff to West Memphis will likely receive between 1 and 3 inches, while the southeastern corner could see only rain and thunderstorms, Lesko said.
The weather service placed much of the state under a winter storm warning late Monday.
Last week, forecasters weren’t so sure if it would snow; various weather forecasting models showed different accumulations, if any.
“It’s a lot more reliable now,” Lesko said. “We have a fairly good handle on it.”
Meteorologists forecast the system to enter the state this morning, bringing rain. When it collides with cold air from the Plains, the rain will turn into sleet, freezing rain and snow.
Most people in the state will see an accumulation of snowfall by night, said National Weather Service warning coordinator John Robinson of North Little Rock.
In Northwest Arkansas, Robinson forecasts light freezing rain or sleet this morning with a change to snow by afternoon.
As the storm system passes through the state, north central and northeast Arkansas will see snow by afternoon.
In Little Rock, rain will fall in the morning and gradually change to a mixture of rain, sleet and snow, Robinson said.
Light snow could continue falling early Wednesday in the northeast corner of the state, he said. Most of the snow will end by noon Wednesday.
“We’ll be ready as conditions worsen,” said Scott Van Laningham, executive director of the Northwest Regional Airport in Bentonville. “Our equipment is ready to go.”
Van Laningham said he expects traffic at his airport will be slower than normal today since it is Christmas. He anticipates about 38 flights arriving and departing today, compared with a daily average of about 50 flights.
Workers at Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport/Adams Field in Little Rock spent Monday checking the airport’s snowplows and runway-clearing chemicals.
Crews with the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department were on standby Monday evening, saidspokesman Randy Ort.
“I’m sure by late [Christmas Day] we will have a full complement of crews working statewide,” Ort said. “Our perspective is that even if the snowfall is a short-lived event, travelers need to be aware of conditions for the rest of the week.”
He urged motorists to be wary of refreezing water on highways at night.
“We would love to tell people enjoy the opportunity of a white Christmas, but we understand people have to travel during the holidays.”
Utility crews are also on standby in case weather disrupts power.
“We’ve been prepared for this scenario all year long,” said Entergy Arkansas Inc. spokesman Julie Munsell. “We know winter is coming.”
She said additional crews from other utility companies are also available to help repair downed lines if needed.
The weather forecast provided some with last-minute Christmas shopping ideas.
Shoppers flocked to the Wal-Mart Supercenter on Martin Luther King Boulevard in Fayetteville to buy plastic snow sleds.
“If there’s snow in the forecast, there’s a run on sleds,” said a Wal-Mart Supercenter employee there who would not give his name.
Randall Delee, a manager at the Wal-Mart Supercenter in Jonesboro, said he put sleds and snow shovels on shelves in anticipation.
“We’ve sold one sled,” he said Monday morning. “But I think it will pick up when more people know it’s coming.”
The last real measurable white Christmas in Arkansas occurred in 1926. Sleet began falling across the state early that morning and then changed to snow. About 2.5 inches of snow fell in Little Rock then.
Flurries and light snow with no accumulation fell on Christmas Day in 2009, 1975, 1939, 1935, 1918, 1914 and 1887, according to National Weather Service records.
“It’s coming,” Lesko said of the inclement weather. “It’s hard to believe because it’s been so warm lately. But it’ll be here.”
Front Section, Pages 1 on 12/25/2012