RI Weather: 'Near White-Out Conditions' Followed By Record Cold

The mixed bag of precipitation we are expected to get Tuesday hasn't changed, but the focus is turning to what the National Weather Service is calling "near white-out conditions" due to scattered snow squalls during Wednesday's commute and the sub-zero freeze that will follow.

Rhode Island is in line to get maybe an inch or two of snow Tuesday, but much of the precipitation that falls could be rain. A winter weather advisory is in much of Massachusetts but has not been called for Rhode Island.

"Perhaps the bigger story," according to the NWS, are snow squalls expected to impact the evening commute Wednesday. The squalls will come between 3-7 p.m., bringing with them heavy snow, quick accumulations and heavy winds. In short, it should be a nightmare to drive through.

Then you can start bundling up. Wednesday night into Thursday morning will bring bone-chilling wind chills as low as negative-9 in the Providence area. Much like the storm earlier this month, expect everything that falls Tuesday and Wednesday to be frozen over by the time you wake up Thursday.

Thursday's temperatures are threatening to break records. The highest minimum temperature - meaning the "least warm" it's ever been on the day - was 15 degrees in Providence in 1935.

Photo by Nicholas Rizzi/Patch