Post-Thanksgiving storm moving through US could disrupt plans to travel home

Post-Thanksgiving storm moving through US could disrupt plans to travel home

Millions of travelers returning home from the holiday weekend could be affected.

ByKenton Gewecke and Julia Jacobo

November 24, 2023, 9:56 AM

A cross-country storm bringing snow and rain to a large portion of the U.S. over the next several days could disrupt the tail end of a busy holiday travel weekend, forecasts show.

More than 9 million Americans across 13 states from Idaho to Texas were under weather alerts on Friday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

Cross Country storm sweeps through the midwest, Nov. 24, 2023.ABC News

Heavy snow has already fallen in the Rocky Mountains and western Plains, with the highest accumulations in places like Luther, Montana, at 10 inches; Heyburn, Idaho, at 8.7 inches; and 8 inches in Fishtail, Montana.

The system won't move much throughout the day on Sunday, and snow will continue to fall over Colorado, Utah and Wyoming. Wind chills within the storm, including in Casper, Wyoming, were down to zero on Friday morning.

The storm will also push snow and rain into New Mexico to the south and snow showers all the way through Nebraska and into Kansas to the east, forecasts show.

Cross Country storm sweeps through the midwest, Nov. 24, 2023.ABC News

On Saturday, the snow will primarily fall through Kansas and western Oklahoma and into the northern panhandle of Texas. Snow may reach places like Kansas City, Missouri, Saturday afternoon and move through northern Missouri into the night.

Rain is expected in the southern half of Missouri on Saturday, as the bottom portion of the system mixes with warmer air.

The storm is expected to bring an additional 6 to 12 inches of snow to the Rockies on Saturday, with more than a foot expected in the southwestern part of Colorado, including Telluride.

Travelers wait in the line to check in for flights at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday on Nov. 22, 2023 in Los Angeles.Mario Tama/Getty Images

Nebraska will get between 3 to 6 inches of snow on Saturday, while parts of Kansas to western Oklahoma are expected to see 4 to 6 inches.

The storm system will continue to move east on Sunday, the busiest travel day of the year.

Snow will start falling in Chicago by 6 a.m. on Sunday and continue through the afternoon.

The storm will then move through Michigan, including Detroit.

Cross Country storm sweeps through the midwest, Nov. 24, 2023.ABC News

The system is expected to change to rain as it moves east and into warmer temperatures, bringing rain to Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee on Sunday night. Rain will also move through the South, including Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle.

The Northeast will start to see the effects of the storm early Monday. Snow may fall in higher elevations of upper New England, but the rest of the region will get rain.

Cross Country storm sweeps through the midwest, Nov. 24, 2023.ABC News

The rain is expected to move through New York City and the Interstate 95 corridor south of the city between midnight and 7 a.m. on Monday, forecasts show. Farther north, in Boston, rain will fall between 3 a.m. and noon.

The storm system will then exit through Maine by midnight on Tuesday, but that won't be the end of inclement weather.

A lake effect snow is forecast on Tuesday for the Great Lake Region, including Cleveland; Erie, Pennsylvania; and Rochester and Syracuse, New York, forecasts show.

Related Topics