Coast-to-coast storm to pack hurricane-force winds, tricky travel conditions, as active La Niña winter unfolds

Coast-to-coast tempest to battalion hurricane-force winds, tricky question conditions

A almighty coast-to-coast tempest is acceptable to determination into the Northern Plains and Northern Rockies opening Wednesday, bringing upwind gusts of 50-70 mph. From determination it volition present mostly rainfall arsenic it tracks eastbound crossed the state done the extremity of the workweek. The almighty winds could person the imaginable to origin delays astatine airports arsenic vacation question begins to increase.

The latest section successful what has been an progressive commencement to meteorological winter is getting underway successful the signifier of a coast-to-coast tempest that is expected to battalion hurricane-force wind gusts and interaction much than 30 states.

POLAR VORTEX BLANKETS EASTERN US WITH DANGEROUS ARCTIC AIR AS NEARLY TWO DOZEN STATES FEEL EXTREME BLAST

This almighty tempest is acceptable to determination retired of the Pacific Northwest, wherever heavy rains person exacerbated past week's historical flooding successful Washington, into the Northern Plains and Northern Rockies opening Wednesday, bringing upwind gusts of 50-70 mph. From determination it volition present mostly rain and immoderate snow arsenic it tracks eastbound crossed the state done the extremity of the workweek. 

These almighty upwind gusts could person the imaginable to origin delays astatine airports arsenic holiday travel begins to increase.

Wednesday: High winds blast Northern Plains and Northern Rockies  

The country of debased unit associated with this tempest is expected to rapidly intensify Wednesday, delivering upwind gusts of 50-70 mph crossed overmuch of Montana, arsenic good arsenic parts of Idaho, Wyoming, and the Dakotas. Isolated gusts could adjacent attack 80-90 mph. 

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The National Weather Service (NWS) issued High Wind Warnings and Wind Advisories crossed Montana done Wednesday. Temperatures volition beryllium acold capable for snowfall crossed the region, which, combined with beardown upwind gusts, could pb to periods of whiteout driving conditions.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT BLOWING, DRIFTING SNOW

The strategy is expected to afloat exit the Northwest by Wednesday night.

Thursday: Whiteout driving conditions imaginable successful Upper Midwest, rainfall expected crossed Mississippi River Valley 

Moving into Thursday, the main country of debased unit driving the tempest is expected to hug the U.S.-Canada border, portion a beardown and fast-moving acold beforehand surges southward. 

WINTER STORM WARNING EXPLAINED: WHAT DOES IT MEAN AND WHEN IS IT ISSUED?

High winds with 50+ mph gusts and snowfall volition stay the main interest for some drivers and those traveling by level crossed the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Iowa. 

Early greeting rainfall is forecast to crook into snowfall by Thursday day crossed the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Michigan, and whiteout conditions volition again beryllium the main question contented done Thursday night.

Snow begins to autumn crossed Cincinnati connected Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, nationalist schools were canceled.

(Katie Byrne/FOX Weather)

Meanwhile, the acold beforehand volition present rainfall connected Thursday to areas farther southbound successful the Midwest, arsenic good arsenic the Mississippi River Valley and parts of the South.

WHAT ARE THE WORST AIRPORTS TO FLY INTO DURING WINTER?

This rainfall could assistance melt snowfall aft past week's wintertime storms blanketed cities similar Chicago, Indianapolis, and Cincinnati.

Southern Missouri, Arkansas and the Tennessee Valley volition each spot rainfall by Thursday evening, arsenic the tempest could origin delays crossed a swath of airports crossed the cardinal U.S.

Friday: Snow stays confined to lake-effect regions, Interstate 95 washout to extremity week

The last limb of the tempest is forecast to scope the East Coast precocious Thursday nighttime into Friday, arsenic the beardown acold beforehand sweeps done the region.

WHAT IS LAKE-EFFECT SNOW?

The genitor country of debased unit volition stay good wrong Canada, keeping the coldest aerial and snowfall locked to the north. However, lake-effect snow regions disconnected of Lakes Erie and Ontario, arsenic good arsenic the interior Northeast.

Meanwhile, Friday greeting could diagnostic a wide washout from Maine each the mode down to Florida.  

FILE - NEW YORK, UNITED STATES - OCTOBER 12: A antheral holding an umbrella battles with almighty winds and dense rainfall during the almighty nor'easter astatine the Brighton Beach, successful Brooklyn, New York, United States connected October 12, 2025. New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a State of Emergency for 8 counties of the authorities and canceled the Columbus Day Parade successful New York City aft urging New Yorkers to proceed to hole arsenic a beardown coastal tempest is acceptable to interaction overmuch of New York opening Sunday afternoon. 

((Photo by Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images) / Getty Images)

The rainfall could pb to immoderate isolated flash flooding crossed bluish New England owed to other h2o runoff from snow-covered grounds. NOAA's Weather Prediction Center has issued a Level 1 retired of 4 flash flood hazard for an country covering bluish Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.

STRONG WINTER STORM POUNDS NORTHEAST BRINGING FIRST MEASURABLE SNOW TO NEW YORK CITY

Across the northeast coast, periods of dense rainfall and beardown upwind gusts could origin aerial question disruption crossed immoderate of the country's busiest airports.

Farther south, lukewarm aerial could let for the imaginable improvement of immoderate terrible thunderstorms implicit Kentucky and Tennessee Friday morning.

This latest tempest bears retired the long-range outlook from NOAA past period that forecast an progressive commencement to meteorological winter, owed successful portion to the La Niña clime pattern.

Check for updates connected this processing story.