Winter Weather Preparedness Week for Virginia
December 4 - 8, 2023
Please join us in promoting winter weather safety during this year's "Winter Weather Preparedness Week". The National Weather Service asks emergency management, public safety officials, local media and Weather-Ready Nation Ambassadors to help join forces in improving the nation's readiness, responsiveness, and overall resilience against extreme weather during the winter weather season.
Each day this week, a different topic will be covered. Click on the tabs below for more winter weather preparedness information.
Monday
Winter Season Outlook and winter weather terminology
This will provide you with some terms the National Weather Service uses to describe winter weather as well as the definitions of watches, warnings, and advisories issued for winter weather events.
Watches are issued when a storm is in it's early stage of development, and may create conditions that may harm life and property. Hazardous winter weather is only a possibility, not a certainty. The following are the watch headlines issued for winter weather events:
|
Warnings are issued when the threat to life and property is imminent or has already begun from severe winter weather. The following are the warning headlines issued for winter weather events:
|
Advisories are issued for less serious weather conditions that will not cause immediate threat to life and property. Advisories will be issued when weather conditions will impact motorists, outdoor activities, or public events. These events could become life-threatening if proper precautions are not taken. The following are the advisory headlines issued for winter weather events:
|
Tuesday
Winter Storms affecting Virginia
The most dangerous winter weather systems for Virginia, which can produce major amounts of snow and ice, are strong coastal low pressure systems known as nor'easters. These types of storms can impact the region a couple times a season and when the temperatures are cold enough, these types of storms can produce big snowfall events. For example, On January 22 - 23, 2016, the commonwealth was impacted by a nor'easter with heavy snow with some locations in Northern Virginia seeing up to 4 Feet of snow. At the same time, strong winds along the coast produced near Blizzard Conditions. The maps below show just how much snow fell with this storm.
Winter storms can make driving and walking extremely dangerous. The aftermath of a major winter storm can have a devastating impact for days or even weeks. Winter storms can be deceptive killers because most deaths are indirectly related to the storm. People die in traffic accidents on icy roads, have heart attacks while shoveling snow, or succumb to fires or carbon monoxide while trying to heat their home improperly. With proper planning and preparation, you can limit or even mitigate the impacts from winter storms.
Lastly for today, The National Weather Service needs accurate snowfall measurements during winter storms. Those accurate snowfall measurements help us to adjust continually update the forecast and warnings during the event. Are you willing to be a snow observer to help the NWS? Below is graphic that shows you how to take an accurate snow measurement. Once you have your report, you can send it to your local NWS office in Blacksburg, VA by:
Wednesday
Excessive Cold and Preparing your home for winter
Cold weather is a fact of winter. With the cold temperatures comes an increase in the number of house fires. House fires resulting from heating material within the home ranks second for the most deaths and property loss. Chimney fires are the number one cause of home heating fires and typically the result of a poorly maintained chimney where creosote is allowed to build up. Space heaters are typically involved in 25 percent of home heating fires and account for 74 percent of the deaths. Be sure to test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and replace any broken detectors and dead batteries.
Severe winter storms can produce conditions which can isolate you in your home for several days. Prolonged loss of power can severely limit your ability to heat your home. Also obtaining supplies, food and other necessities can be hampered or prevented by poor road conditions. Make sure to stock an emergency supply of food and water prior to the onset of a winter storm. Include food items which require no cooking such as canned meats, peanut butter and other non-perishables. Also do not forget to have necessary medicines and baby items on hand. A three to five day supply of food and medicine is generally sufficient. A lot of these items may already be in your home from your hurricane kit.
Example home emergency supply kit
Winter Infographics
Thursday
Dangers associated with freezing rain and sleet
Ice falling in the form of freezing rain is particularly dangerous and poses a variety of problems. The ability of freezing rain to accumulate on nearly every surface, including trees, power lines, and bridges, makes it one of the most dangerous forms of winter weather. As little as a quarter of an inch of freezing rain can create widespread power outages. Central and southern portions of Virginia saw one of the worst ice storms in the last 20 years on February 12 - 13, 2021 when a long period of light to moderate rain developed and fell into areas with surface temperatures around 30 degrees. This lead to trees and power lines being coated in ice and eventually lead to widespread power outages that took nearly two weeks to be fully repaired in some locations.
When driving, ice can be very difficult to recognize. The roadway may appear to be wet when in reality when appears to be water may actually be ice. If the temperature outside is below freezing, ice can form on the roads, especially on bridges and overpasses. When encountering ice, do not panic and do not stomp on your brakes. It is safer to slowly decelerate to a stop.
Winter infographics
Friday
Driving in winter weather
Seventy-five percent of all winter weather related deaths occur on the road, either in accidents or by people becoming stranded. When the weather is bad and driving conditions are poor, the best bet is to stay at home
Winter infographics
Winter Weather Video Series - Weather You Want to Know (or not)
Frequently Asked Questions
You can also send your snow or ice report to NWS Blacksburg using our Storm Report Form!
Get more information at build your winter storm kit and prepare for cold weather.
The polar vortex is a large area of low pressure and cold air surrounding both of the Earth’s poles. It ALWAYS exists near the poles, but weakens in summer and strengthens in winter. The term "vortex" refers to the counter-clockwise flow of air that helps keep the colder air near the Poles. Many times during winter in the northern hemisphere, the polar vortex will expand, sending cold air southward with the jet stream (see graphic above). This occurs fairly regularly during wintertime and is often associated with large outbreaks of Arctic air in the United States.
Get more information at: Polar Vortex FAQ.
What is Wind Chill, and how is it calculated?
Wind Chill is how cold people or animals feel when outside. Wind chill is based on the rate of heat loss from exposed skin caused by wind and cold. As the wind increases, it draws heat from the body, driving down skin temperature and eventually the internal body temperature. Therefore, the wind makes it FEEL much colder. If the temperature is 0°F and the wind is blowing at 15 mph, the wind chill is -19°F. At this wind chill temperature, exposed skin can freeze in 30 minutes. The wind chill temperature is calculated using the following formula:
Wind chill (ºF) = 35.74 + 0.6215T - 35.75(V^0.16) + 0.4275T(V^0.16)
Where: T = Air Temperature (F)
V = Wind Speed (mph)
^ = raised to a power (exponential)
Wind chill temperature is only defined for temperatures at or below 50°F and wind speeds above 3 mph. Bright sunshine may increase the wind chill temperature by 10°F to 18°F.
More information on Wind Chill is included at Wind Chill FAQs.
The difference between a snow squall and a snowstorm really just comes down to the duration of the event. Snow squalls are usually very short-lived (on the order of 30-60 minutes) and extremely intense. A snow storm could last for several hours or even days. More information is available at Snow Squall FAQ.
Find us on social media:
You can also contact:
Phil Hysell (Phil.Hysell@noaa.gov) for additional information about Virginia's 2023 Winter Weather Awareness Week.