As tens of millions of travelers across a large swath of the country begin to hit the roads and skies before Thanksgiving, storms threaten to upend their vacation plans.
Rain, thunderstorms, snow, wind, fog and ice are all in the forecast for the central and eastern United States, AccuWeather said. The worst weather on Tuesday is expected from the Great Lakes region to the northeast and into the southeast.
The center of the storm “is expected to reach the lower Great Lakes region, producing widespread rainfall with some thunderstorms from the Midwest into the lower Great Lakes region and the Ohio Valley, and quickly moving toward New England Tuesday night,” the National Weather Service said.
Wet snow and freezing rain are possible
Temperatures will likely be cold enough to support wet snow early Tuesday over the upper Midwest, reaching east into New England by Tuesday night. Freezing rain is possible, the weather service said.
AccuWeather expects snow to be possible in parts of northern Pennsylvania and upstate New York into central and northern New England through Tuesday night. “3 to 6 inches of snow is expected to fall in the Adirondacks and Green Mountains, while 6 to 12 inches is expected to accumulate from central New Hampshire to much of northwest Maine,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said. .
In the Appalachians, AccuWeather warned that fog will blanket the hills — and when combined with slick roads, dangerous travel conditions could result.
“Miserable” travel on the roads on Tuesday
Heavy rain will result in “miserable” road travel Tuesday on most of the mid-Atlantic stretch of I-80, I-81 and I-95, Sosnowski said. “Heavy rain may continue into late Tuesday afternoon in New York City and into late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning around Boston. Motorists should expect delays due to this storm,” he said.
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Strong to severe thunderstorms are likely in the South and Mid-Atlantic
Some strong thunderstorms are expected to roll through the Tennessee Valley and the interior of the Southeast early Tuesday, followed by the southern Appalachians and into the mid-Atlantic by Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, the National Weather Service warned.
The Storm Prediction Center said some storms could become severe across parts of southern Alabama and the Florida Panhandle on Tuesday. This includes the risk of hurricanes.
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Wind can be a problem at airports
Strong winds can cause problems for air travelers: “High east-southeast winds averaging 25-35 mph with gusts of 40-45 mph can be a problem at some airports from Washington, D.C. to Philadelphia and New York City. “The worst conditions are likely from late Tuesday afternoon into Tuesday evening,” AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Tom Caines said.
AccuWeather said airline delays were likely due to wind, heavy rain and poor visibility.
Better weather on Wednesday and Thanksgiving
On Wednesday, with the exception of snow in the Northeast and New England, most of the country is expected to see good travel weather. For travelers who wait until Thursday, not only will much of the Midwest and Northeast be dry on Thanksgiving Day, but also much of the country, AccuWeather said.
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More than 55 million people will travel for the holiday
About 55.4 million Americans will travel more than 50 miles on Thanksgiving from Wednesday to Sunday, the third-highest Thanksgiving travel numbers since 2000, behind only 2005 and 2019, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA). More than 49 million people will travel by road this year, AAA said.
Contributing: Janine Santucci
