In Grand Forks, a White Christmas is almost a certainty.
According to the National Weather Service in Grand Forks there has been snow on the ground 95 percent of the time on Dec. 25. This year, fresh snow is likely to fall Christmas Day, and with that snow could come heavy winds that hinder holiday travel, meteorologists say.
Jim Kaiser, a weather service meteorologist in Grand Forks for 11 years, said weekend snow is likely to hold off Christmas Eve and begin falling early Christmas morning. It’s too early to say how much will fall.
“It does look like there’s going to be wind with this system, so travel could be affected,” Kaiser said.
The seven-day weather service forecast for Grand Forks says snow is likely Christmas Day, with winds hovering around 16 mph and gusts near 23 mph. Sunday night, the snow and the winds could get heavier, with gusts near 25 mph and a 70 percent chance of precipitation.
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Holiday travelers will want to use caution Monday with a 30 percent chance of snow and winds between 15 to 20 mph coming out of the northwest.
A hazardous weather outlook issued by the weather service Tuesday morning said a system moving into the region Wednesday would bring 1 to 3 inches of accumulation mainly north of Highway 2, with winds gusting up to 40 mph.
The potential storm system moving in Saturday through Monday could deliver heavy snow and strong wind, “but uncertainty is very high and it is impossible to determine the exact track of the system,” the outlook said.
“Impacts of this possible system will be high with holiday travel,” it said.
Along with the possibility of winter weather, this week also brings the first official day of winter, marked by the shortest day of the year, Wednesday.
