Weather tracker: snow expected on east and west US coasts
This week will feature snow events on opposite coasts of the US. As in late February, another west coast atmospheric river, or “Pineapple Express”, will bring rainfall and mountain snow to California and Oregon. Rain and mountain snow is expected to become more widespread and intense overnight and into Tuesday as an area of low pressure moves east, clearing through Wednesday.
Several feet of snow is expected to accumulate in the Sierra Nevada mountains by Wednesday evening, with the highest areas seeing up to 12 ft (3.66 metres). Large amounts of rain, with added snowmelt, will bring a significant risk of flooding across parts of the west but particularly in central California. However, every cloud has a silver lining, and in this case – in combination with the previous atmospheric river – it’s in the form of a considerable reduction in California’s extreme drought conditions.
Farther east, an area of low pressure is tracked from the deep south to the Carolinas. The system is expected to intensify as it moves up the east coast, developing into a nor’easter on Monday night and stirring up a snowstorm across several states in New England, New York and Pennsylvania. Heavy snow and blustery winds are expected from Monday night through to Wednesday, leading to the National Weather Service issuing a warning of dangerous or near impossible travel at times. Snow rates of up to two inches (about 5cm) per hour are possible, leading to accumulations of potentially 12-18 inches (about 30-46cm) in places, as well as the risk of power outages in some areas.
More than 100 killed as Storm Freddy returns to Mozambique and Malawi
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In the southern hemisphere, Cyclone Freddy made landfall in Mozambique again on Saturday night. Strong winds, heavy rain, and flooding induced by a storm surge has sadly claimed another life, bringing Freddy’s death toll to at least 28 in the past month. While the World Meteorological Organisation has yet to confirm whether Freddy is the longest-lasting cyclone on record, it has been calculated that Freddy has generated as much accumulated cyclone energy over 35 days as the average Atlantic hurricane season. Some models suggest Freddy could return to the Mozambique Channel this week, with the potential to restrengthen.