Winter Storm Jonas Brings Dangerous Weather to East Coast

By Margo Gothelf

Brace yourself, winter is coming (finally). Historic Winter Storm Jonas is expected to start dumping heavy snow, freezing rain, and sleet along the East Coast this weekend, leaving as much as 2 feet of snow in parts of Washington D.C and Baltimore.

Early Friday morning, Jonas has already taken full force leaving a foot of snow in western North Carolina. Parts of Kentucky, western Virginia, and Arkansas have also reported snowfall in the area measuring up to a half-foot or more of snow. Winter Storm Jonas is also expected to bring thundersnow showers around the Nashville area, where snowfall has already been reported at an inch per hour.

The storm will continue overnight bringing the worst of the winter weather. Portions of the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast are under blizzard watch, with warnings for strong winds and coastal flooding.

#SNOW @Belmar_NJ prepares for flooding and erosion with Beachfront Emergency Dunes.https://t.co/ZbzmL0jB4y pic.twitter.com/qcro0UHAEJ

— wcbs880 (@wcbs880) January 22, 2016

“More than 85 million people – or roughly one in every four Americans – in at least 20 states were covered by either a blizzard warning, winter storm watch, winter storm warning, winter weather advisory, or freezing rain advisory from Arkansas to the Carolinas to the New York City area and extreme southern New England,” shared The Weather Channel.

The National Weather Service has issued official blizzard warnings from northern Virginia to Long Island, including major cities such as Washington D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York.

In anticipation of the storm, airlines have already cancelled nearly 3,000 flights across the eastern seaboard.

2,700+ domestic flights cancelled today. Get the latest Winter Storm #Jonas travel impacts: https://t.co/5pF1zsLUKQ pic.twitter.com/2z2SdAduw2

— The Weather Channel (@weatherchannel) January 22, 2016

The Weather Channel predicts some of the heaviest snowfall to impact major metropolitan areas all along the I-95 corridor.

Winter Storm #Jonas could bring 1-2ft of #snow to the Mid-Atlantic, watch @weatherchannel for latest updates! pic.twitter.com/Al5AcLWJvx

— American Red Cross (@RedCross) January 22, 2016