Nov. 23 (UPI) — National Weather Service forecasters warned Saturday that “sloppy” weather could impact Thanksgiving travel in the eastern half of the United States, including the potential for the coldest temperatures this season.
As millions of Americans hit the roads and airports, the best potential for moderate to heavy precipitation during the midweek period lies in the Tennessee and Lower Ohio valleys, extending into the Appalachians and the Mid-Atlantic, NWS forecasters said in their extended forecast discussion.
Meanwhile, winter precipitation is forecast across the Northern Plains and upper West, where the Wasatch and central Rockies could be blanketed with heavy snowfalls of up to 3 feet in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and 3 to 2 feet in the Colorado Rockies . .
East of the Rockies, the Thanksgiving weather story will likely be colder than average temperatures as a high-pressure cold front crashes through the center of the country, bringing some of the lowest temperatures this fall, meteorologists said.
And along the East Coast, home to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, some forecasters are pointing to the possibility of snow or rain on Thursday.
The cold temperatures, rain and blustery winds set to invade the Ohio Valley and Mid-Atlantic region could “prove challenging” for Thanksgiving Day parades, according to Accuweather.
“A storm has the potential to disrupt transit for those traveling even locally through parts of the Midwest and Northeast on Thanksgiving Day, even those looking for Black Friday deals could face travel challenges,” AccuWeather Senior said Meteorologist Tyler Roys in a message.
He added that strong winds associated with the rough weather could result in “unsafe conditions” for the giant balloons used in the parades.
“There will be increasing clouds with high winds on Thanksgiving, but rain will likely continue through the afternoon,” forecasters at WPIX-TV in New York said.
