Another snowstorm expected Wednesday; winter storm warning, advisory set

This National Weather Service graphic shows expected snow totals Wednesday in Arkansas.
This National Weather Service graphic shows expected snow totals Wednesday in Arkansas.

Before Arkansas had fully thawed from its latest round of wintry weather, forecasters were warning of another storm that could drop up to 6 inches of snow.

Crews were still working to clear slick conditions from Monday's snowfall when the National Weather Service warned another, stronger system would drop snow on roughly the southern half of Arkansas.

The agency on Tuesday afternoon set a winter weather advisory for Garland, Lonoke, Monroe, Montgomery, Polk, Prairie, Pulaski and Saline counties and a winter storm warning for points further south. Each goes into effect Wednesday morning.

Snowfall amounts are expected to range from 1 to 2 inches north and west of Little Rock to 2 to 4 inches in Little Rock, Pine Bluff and Hot Springs to some areas in south Arkansas that may see up to 6 inches.

Julie Lesko, a meteorologist with the weather service in North Little Rock, cautioned that the heavy band of snow could shift; one forecast model had it moving closer to central Arkansas earlier Tuesday and another sent it south toward Louisiana.

"It's just a matter of how the storm itself tracks," Lesko said Tuesday morning, calling the models a "first best guess" of what the storm will do. "As little as 50 miles in the track can make a world of difference."

Chris Buonanno, science and operations officer for the North Little Rock weather service office, said in a statement that the Wednesday storm is "stronger than those that recently affected the state" and has "potential for significant accumulations of snow, especially over the southern half of the state."

The next storm comes just two days after a wintry system made a mess of Arkansas highways, prompting schools to call off class and mobilizing plows and road crews in much of the state.

By midmorning Tuesday, the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department reported some form of slick conditions on numerous highways in roughly the southern two-thirds of the state. But temperatures were approaching the freezing mark and, in some places including Little Rock, the sun was shining and helping melt the lingering snow and ice.

School districts around the state, including Little Rock, North Little Rock, Pulaski County, Benton and Bryant, had called off class for the day. The University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, meanwhile, delayed opening till 9 a.m., and Arkansas state workers were to report two hours late in the Little Rock metropolitan area.

In addition to the storm expected Wednesday, yet another system could bring snow Thursday afternoon into Friday. But Lesko said it would be a "quick-moving" system.

"This does not look like it would be as big as what Wednesday could see," she said.

There is some relief in the days ahead with temperatures forecast Sunday to reach the 50s in the north and the 60s in the south. But below-normal temperatures are expected again after that, Lesko said, noting winter lasts more than three more weeks.

A look at road conditions Tuesday morning from Stifft Station to downtown via Markham Street and Capitol Avenue.

Dash cam: Feb. 24 road conditions

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This screenshot from IDriveArkansas.com shows conditions around Arkansas at 5:45 a.m.

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MacArthur Park in Little Rock is covered in a layer of snow Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015.

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Interstate 30 in downtown Little Rock is seen Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015.

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Interstate 30 in downtown Little Rock is seen Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015.

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A thin layer of snow coats the roads at South Main Street and Daisy Gatson Bates Drive in Little Rock on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015.

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A thin layer of snow coats the roads at South Main Street and Daisy Gatson Bates Drive in Little Rock on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015.

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