When there is a high probability that a winter storm will actually strike, or if heavy snow or ice is already hampering travel nearby, a warning is issued. Weather conditions will quickly deteriorate, and travel should only be attempted with 4-wheel drive vehicles or snowmobiles. Weather Advisory Issued by the local National Weather Service office when winter weather is likely to make travel difficult. This is liquid rain that freezes on contact with a cold ground at a temperature under thirty-two degrees. Freezing rain can accumulate on trees and power lines, snapping branches and knocking out power if air temperatures remain below freezing for any length of time.
Sleet falls as ice pellets that form when rain drops freeze before reaching the ground.
They can often be seen bouncing off objects, and they can accumulate on the ground, much like snow. This often results in severe blowing and drifting, causing blizzard conditions. They are most likely to be found along or behind a cold front, under an upper air disturbance, a puddle of unusually cold air aloft. Snow flurries Used to describe intermittent light snow with little or no accumulation. Blizzards can approach from any direction, but are most likely to produce heavy snow when the upper level winds are blowing from Texas or New Mexico.