Heavy rain and freezing rain will be possible in western Kentucky later this week, but exactly when, where and how much are still in question.
A winter storm watch has been issued from 6 a.m. Thursday morning until 6 a.m. Friday for much of western Kentucky, including Hopkins, Muhlenberg, Caldwell and Lyon counties and areas to the north and west—with forecasters saying the southern Pennyrile could be added later if necessary.
Christine Wielgos is the warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Paducah and said during a conference call Monday morning that exactly who gets the most wintry precipitation and what type will be decided by the track of a weather system headed toward our area.
Rain will become likely in the Pennyrile region of western Kentucky Tuesday night and last into Thursday and that’s when the transition—possibly to freezing rain—will take place. Different weather models have shown different timetables on Thursday for the transition and different amounts of ice accumulation and Wielgos says the forecast will continue changing until closer to the event.
There’s also a possibility of flooding in the usual places with the system, as western Kentucky could see over two inches of precipitation between Tuesday night and Thursday night.
Bitter cold will follow the front, with wind chills to be a concern for anyone outdoors Friday and Saturday.