Winter weather advisory extended through noon for parts of north Arkansas

A winter weather advisory in northern Arkansas has been extended until noon for several counties.

The National Weather Service said freezing rain and sleet may continue through early afternoon, potentially creating hazardous driving conditions.

The advisory through noon covers Baxter, Boone, Fulton, Izard, Lawrence, Marion, Newton, Randolph, Sharp, Searcy and Stone counties. A separate advisory that covered three counties in northeast Arkansas — Clay, Greene and Craighead — has expired.

EARLIER:

A winter weather advisory is in effect for several counties in northern Arkansas as a system expected to produce light wintry weather moves through, forecasters said.

Freezing rain and sleet are both possible, the National Weather Service said. The advisory continues through 10 a.m. for counties in the central north region and 9 a.m. for those in the northeast.

"Light sleet accumulations will be possible, but the main impacts will come from the freezing rain," the weather service wrote in a briefing, noting an icy glaze of up to a tenth of an inch was possible in places with some higher elevation areas seeing more.

"Ice accretions on trees and powerlines are expected, with roadways remaining mainly wet," the briefing said. But it warned that "elevated roadways and overpasses may become slick at times."

Temperatures are forecast to surpass the freezing mark later in the day.

The counties in purple are under a winter weather advisory on Friday morning. (National Weather Service map)

[Map of counties under advisory not showing up above? Click here to see it » arkansasonline.com/117winter]