Bad, Damaging Winter Storm Hitting PA; Hazardous Weather Warnings Issued

READ UPDATE: Winter Weather Advisory - Or Warning - Issued For All PA; Storm Heading Our Way

A bad, damaging winter storm is hitting Pennsylvania, but it won't be all about the snow.

Arctic blasts and plenty of snow are expected to fall anytime from Thursday through Sunday, with some strong, tropical-storm-force winds are hitting parts of Pennsylvania - or as one forecaster put it, "A lot of winter coming at you fast."

The National Weather Service issued a hazardous weather outlook for eastern Pennsylvania. Winter weather advisories have been reported for parts of central Pennsylvania and western Pennsylvania, and a wind chill advisory is in effect for the Pittsburgh area.

Here is what is expected to happen, and what's possible:

• Bitter cold is moving into the area, with wind chills temperatures in the single-digits Thursday night.
• Wind gusts could approach 40 to 60 mph on Thursday.
• Snow will likely overspread the area Friday night and then transition into a wintry mix on Saturday.
• The region will be hit by "snow squalls," which are small, short blizzard-like blasts of snow and wind.
• Light icing is possible during the transition to a wintry mix.

Here is a map of what eastern Pennsylvania residents should be seeing:

Here is what central Pennsylvania could be seeing:

Here is what western Pennsylvania could be seeing:

The storm is part of a larger system that will create dangerous travel conditions across a 1,200-mile swath of the United States into the weekend.

Blizzard conditions could develop in major hubs such as Denver and Chicago. People from the Rockies to the northern Plains and Upper Midwest are bracing for a new round of snow and travel disruptions on the highways and at airports. But the same issues could impact our area.

"Motorists and airline passengers may want to explore an alternate or more southern route as confidence is high that there will be widespread, major travel disruptions with this storm," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson said.

The storm will bring a wintry and icy mix with slippery travel from as far south as the Carolinas to as far north as Maine during the weekend. The storm will bring the first accumulating snow to Washington, D.C. and enough snow to shovel and plow from Philadelphia to New York City and Boston.

Here is the NWS weather forecast for eastern Pennsylvania:

• Thursday: A slight chance of snow showers between 11am and 2pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 23. Blustery, with a northwest wind 16 to 21 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20 percent.
• Thursday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 9. Wind chill values as low as -3. West wind 11 to 17 mph.
• Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 23. Wind chill values as low as zero. Northwest wind around 6 mph becoming light and variable in the afternoon.
• Friday night: Snow, mainly after 1am. Low around 17. South wind 3 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation possible.
• Saturday: Snow and sleet before 1pm, then a chance of freezing rain between 1 and 4 p.m., then a chance of rain after 4pm. High near 45. Southwest wind 7 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100 percent. Little or no ice accumulation expected. New snow and sleet accumulation possible.
• Saturday night: Rain likely, mainly after midnight. Cloudy, with a low around 35. Chance of precipitation is 70 percent. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
• Sunday: Rain likely before 2 p.m., then a chance of sleet between 2 and 5 p.m., then a chance of snow and sleet after 5pm. Cloudy, with a high near 43. Chance of precipitation is 60 percent.

Here is central and western Pennsylvania:

• Thursday: Mostly cloudy and cold, with a high near 12. Wind chill values as low as -8. West wind around 17 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph.
• Thursday night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 3. Wind chill values as low as -9. West wind 9 to 15 mph.
• Friday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 22. Wind chill values as low as -9. Southwest wind around 7 mph becoming southeast in the afternoon.
• Friday night: Snow likely before 4 a.m., then snow, freezing rain, and sleet. Low around 19. Southeast wind 7 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80 percent. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
• Saturday: Snow, freezing rain, and sleet before 9am, then rain or freezing rain between 9am and 1pm, then rain likely after 1pm. High near 49. South wind 8 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90 percent. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
• Saturday night: Rain showers before 4am, then rain and snow showers likely. Low around 31. Chance of precipitation is 80 percent. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
• Sunday: Snow showers likely before 1pm, then a chance of rain and snow showers between 1 and 3 p.m., then a chance of rain showers after 3pm. Cloudy, with a high near 36. Chance of precipitation is 60 percent.

Patch file photo