WEATHER UPDATE: 'Plowable' Snow, Below-Zero Wind Chills and Dangerous Winds Forecast for Mansfield

By Brian McCready.

The only good news in the latest forecast for Connecticut is that if you don’t mind eating dinner early on Valentine’s Day you should be able to beat most of the heavier snow that is predicted to fall on Saturday.

Connecticut meteorologists are still predicting up to six inches of snow to accumulate beginning as light snow around noon on Saturday and ending by noon on Sunday. But they caution that the gusty winds may pose the biggest issue come Sunday with gusts reaching 60 mph.

Here are the latest weather advisories. A wind chill advisory is in effort for Hartford, Tolland, northern Fairfield and New Haven counties.

A Winter Storm Watch has been issued for New Haven, Hartford, Tolland, Middlesex, and New London counties. A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for Fairfield County.

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WFSB 3 Meteorologist Mark Dixon predicts 6 to 10 inches of snow for eastern Connecticut with the highest amounts near the Rhode Island border, 4 to 8 inches for the central portion of the state and about 3 to 6 inches for the western part of the state.

WTNH News 8 Meteorologist Gil Simmons is predicting light snow to begin between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Saturday and continue to fall lightly until 9 p.m. The heaviest snow is forecast from 10 p.m. on Saturday through 10 a.m. on Sunday.

After the snow ends, temperatures will struggle to hit single digits on Sunday and winds will gust up to 40 to 60 mph.

And a significant snowstorm is also in the forecast for Tuesday night and into Wednesday. It’s possible six or more inches could accumulate, WFSB 3 TV predicts.

Here is the National Weather Service’s latest hyperlocal forecast for Mansfield and Storrs:

• Saturday: Snow, mainly after 11am. High near 26. Wind chill values as low as -3. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 8 mph in the morning. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.
• Saturday Night: Snow. Low around 14. Wind chill values as low as zero. Light and variable wind becoming north 6 to 11 mph in the evening. Winds could gust as high as 23 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches possible.
• Sunday: Snow likely, mainly before noon. Cloudy, with a high near 17. Wind chill values as low as -7. Blustery, with a northwest wind 17 to 24 mph, with gusts as high as 40 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.
• Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around -7. Blustery, with a northwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 36 mph.

Photo by Dean McCoy Photography, via flickr creative commons