Weather

Wintry mix tapering off, rain in forecast until 6 p.m.

Cyndi Murray Photo | Route 48 in Southold at 10 a.m. Wednesday.
Cyndi Murray Photo | Route 48 in Southold at 10 a.m. Wednesday.

Noon

Knock on wood.

The snow and ice storm has turned into mostly rain, or stopped altogether in Southold Town,  which is helping to melt some of the snow that fell overnight.

The National Weather Service still has a winter storm warning in effect for the area, predicting sleet and freezing rain until 1 p.m., then rain after that until 6 p.m.

David Stark, a National Weather Service meteorologist based in Upton, said the temperatures have been higher than predicted so far, but that they are close enough to freezing to keep a wintry mix going for a bit.

He said all of the precipitation will stop around 6 p.m. or 7 p.m., but temperatures will drop to around 20 degrees tomorrow morning, so the roads and other surfaces will be slippery and dangerous.

“The heavy sleet that we had this morning is over,” he said.

Thursday will see temperatures in the 20s, but it also will be sunny, which could help melt some of the snow and ice on the ground, Mr. Stark said.

The next potential snow storm will be Sunday.

Mr. Stark said that’s still too far out to predict with any certainty what will happen, although snow is a possibility.

10 a.m.

Main Road and Route 48 are largely just wet, though residents are still being urged to take caution if out and about.

“It’s going well,” said Southold Highway Superintendent Vincent Orlando said Wednesday morning. “The [main] roads are pretty much clear. We’re staying on top of it.”

The town will continue to plow until about 5 p.m., he said. At that time, highway workers will salt the roads again to prevent icing.

A winter storm warning remains in effect through 6 p.m.

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8:30 a.m.

Southold Town Highway Superintendent Vincent Orlando is urging motorist to stay off the potentially dangerous Southold roads Wednesday morning.

“The roads are slippery,” he said. “If you have to drive use caution.”

And while other towns are reporting shortages of salt supplies, Mr. Orlando said Southold remains in good shape — at least for now.

“As of Friday, our salt storage was full, so, we’re good for this storm and whatever Sunday brings,” he said Wednesday morning. “After that we’re going to need more.”

He said he put in an order for more salt last week and hopes to receive it soon.

Overall, Southold Town has used 60 percent of its budget for sand and salt, he said.

And if the storms keep coming?

“Unless something changes I am probably going to have to go before the Town Board and ask for money,” Mr. Orlando said. “I already talked to [Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell]… He agrees that there is no price on safety.”

5 a.m.

The light snow that continues to fall through the overnight hours is expected to get heavier before turning to sleet and freezing rain after 6 a.m., making for a slippery and dangerous commute on the North Fork Wednesday morning, weather officials are reporting.

A Winter Storm Warning is in effect across Long Island until 6 p.m. and as much as two to four inches of snow could mix with up to a quarter of an inch sheet of ice along our roadways.

“Travel will be extremely dangerous due to significant snow and ice accumulations,” the National Weather Service is reporting. “Snow and ice accumulations will knock down tree limbs and power lines.”

Wind gusts of up to 20 miles per hour are expected and temperatures should remain at or below freezing until about 10 a.m. A high of about 35 degrees has been forecast as the rain continues through the afternoon. Temperatures are then expected to dip back into the 20s overnight and remain freezing into Thursday morning.

As for the rest of the week, NWS meteorologist John Murray said Thursday and Friday will be cold and dry and there’s chance for more snow over the weekend.

“There is another system that has our attention,” he said. “There’ll likely be some changes from forecast to forecast. At the current time, what we have is another chance of snow. Slight chance Saturday morning and we’ll see that chance of snow generally exist through the remainder of the weekend into next Monday.”

More than 30 inches of snow has already fallen on the North Fork this year.