A Winter Storm Warning is in effect for every county of Western New York with the exception of Allegany County, beginning Sunday evening in the northern half of the region, and continuing through Wednesday afternoon.
For the Niagara, Orleans, Genesee, and Northern Erie Counties, the Winter Storm Warning takes effect Sunday at 1 p.m. and continues until Wednesday at 4 p.m. It takes effect for Southern Erie, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, and Wyoming Counties beginning 7 a.m. Monday morning, and continues through Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Heavy lake effect snow is expected, with accumulations of 10 to 20 inches in more persistent areas.
Winds could gust as high as 50 miles per hour, creating blowing and drifting snow with very poor visibility in places. This weather system is expected to impact morning and evening commutes early in the week.
Lake effect snowbands are expected to oscillate throughout this event with the greatest duration of lake snows likely from the Buffalo Metro area to Batavia southward. Snowfall could be up to two inches per hour Sunday afternoon into Monday morning in the northern portion of the region, while the same rate could occur between Monday afternoon into Tuesday morning for the southern portion of WNY.
Additionally, wind chill values of zero to 15 below zero Fahrenheit are expected Monday night into Tuesday throughout the region, including Allegany County, which is not under the Winter Storm Warning but has been issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook for those winds.
The National Weather Service also advises that the winds pose a risk of falling tree limbs, causing power outages.