Winter Weather in Northwest Pocahontas, West Virginia

On December 15th, a mixture of freezing rain and snow showers were draped along the spine of the Appalachian Mountains in West Virginia. The setup that day featured high pressure stationed over eastern Canada, a stalled warm front draped over the forecast area, and a low pressure system approaching from the west. This set the stage for a pocket of warm air aloft to be loafing along the higher terrain at the onset of precipitation. As as result, a brief period of freezing rain was observed in spots along the West Virginia mountains during the day, before changing over to all snow late that evening into the early morning of December 16th. Snow accumulations ranged from 1 to 4 inches along the higher terrain. This system quickly progressed eastward, with activity diminishing from west to east in advance of building high pressure.