Ice, Snow, Damaging Winds Hit Northeast Ohio On Saturday

CLEVELAND — Northeast Ohioans woke Saturday to a blanket of snow covering their lawns and roofs. The weather is expected to worsen Saturday, with powerful wind gusts and freezing rain on the way.

An additional 1 to 3 inches of snow could fall throughout the day, the National Weather Service warned, before freezing rain tops the snow with ice. Up to 2/10ths of an inch of ice could form before 3 p.m. on Saturday.

Warmer air will eventually pass through Northeast Ohio and will turn the ice into rain, which should melt away much of the snow. Temperatures will eventually dip back into freezing though, meaning ice could be a problem on Sunday as well.

Wind gusts could hit 40 mph on Saturday, which could lead to power outages throughout the region. At 9 a.m., about 840 people were without power in Richland County. Nearly 1,000 people were without power across Northeast Ohio.

The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory on Saturday. The advisory is in place until 3 p.m. and applies to the following counties: Erie, Lorain, Cuyahoga, Lake, Geauga, Ashtabula, Huron, Medina, Summit, Portage, Trumbull, Crawford, Richland, Ashland, Wayne, Stark, Mahoning, Marion, Morrow, Holmes and Knox.

The agency also issued a wind advisory, which will be in place until 10 a.m. on Sunday. Lakeshore towns will see the strongest winds, the National Weather Service said.

"Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree limbs could be blown down and isolated power outages may result," the National Weather Service said.