A strengthening storm is expected to bring snow, ice and possibly severe thunderstorms to parts of the central and eastern United States as it slides across the country this weekend into early next week.
AccuWeather expert meteorologists warn that several Arctic blasts will bring waves of bitterly cold air to much of the eastern half of the nation starting this weekend, which could result in the lowest January temperatures in more than a decade in some places.
“We’re going to be dealing with the coldest air of the season and multiple days of subzero temperatures from the northern Plains and Upper Midwest into the Tennessee Valley,” AccuWeather Chief On-Air Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said.
Lake-effect snow returns
Lake-effect snow is forecast to ramp up this week as progressively colder air moves across the Great Lakes. 
AccuWeather is forecasting 12-24 inches of snowfall downwind of the Great Lakes in parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York from Wednesday through Sunday, with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 48 inches.
Ice cover on the Great Lakes is currently well below the historical average, allowing the cold air blowing across the relatively warmer waters to create lake-effect snow.
Cross-country storm
A storm barreling out of the Rockies will strengthen and create messy conditions that could impact millions of people this weekend through next Tuesday.
AccuWeather expert meteorologists warn that a battleground between the competing warm and cold air can produce freezing rain at times, complicating travel this weekend. This zone can quickly cause roads to become icy, making travel dangerous across the region. Any areas of excessive ice can down some tree branches and power lines, leading to localized power outages.
“There’s enough cold air on the northern side of this storm for accumulating snowfall,” Rayno said. “There’s a large zone from the Plains through the mid-Atlantic that could see a wintry mix with snow, ice and rain that could create slippery travel conditions.”
Snowfall will begin across the Plains on Saturday, bringing slick road conditions and reduced visibility. Meanwhile, this storm is expected to deliver heavy rainfall and thunderstorms across Oklahoma, Texas and the Gulf Coast.
Moisture from the Gulf of Mexico interacting with the passing storm will fuel thunderstorms on Sunday. AccuWeather expert meteorologists say thunderstorms can be severe with hail and damaging winds across the Gulf Coast states. The AccuWeather Local StormMax™ for Sunday and Sunday night is 70 mph.
There also is a risk of an isolated tornado. Severe thunderstorms on Sunday could impact areas that were recently damaged by tornadoes and damaging wind gusts.
The storm will continue to advance eastward, bringing travel concerns to the East. Snow and ice will arrive across the Ohio Valley and mid-Atlantic next Monday. Snow and freezing rain could impact morning commutes on Monday and Tuesday across the mid-Atlantic coast.
Frigid air to blanket the East Coast
AccuWeather expert meteorologists say several Arctic blasts will send waves of bitterly cold air across much of the eastern United States starting this weekend.
The deep freeze could impact natural gas production and operations in the Northeast. The blasts of cold air are expected to trigger a surge in heating demand, leading to higher energy and utility bills.
“We expect Marcellus Shale natural gas production areas in the Northeast could be impacted by bitterly cold air. This deep freeze could slow or even stop drilling and operations at times. The demand for natural gas and heating will likely surge across the eastern half of the country starting this weekend, as temperatures plummet across the Northeast, Midwest and much of the Southeast,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alan Reppert said. “We also expect parts of Europe to be impacted by very cold air later this week and possibly into next week, which could increase the demand for natural gas exports. The combination of cold weather impacts and heating demand in the United States and Europe will likely cause natural gas prices to remain elevated into next week.”
AccuWeather expert meteorologists say the waves of cold air could lead to the coldest January in the United States as a whole since 2011. 
Should the cold wave evolve to its full potential, temperature departures could plunge to 30 to 40 degrees below the historical average from the Midwest to the interior Southeast for several days during the first to second full week of January.
“In the Southeast (Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama and Florida), this January could end up being the coldest since January 2018, which was 4.3 degrees below the historical average. In an extreme scenario where the cold lingers past the middle of January, January 2025 could be the coldest since January 2014 in this region, which was 6 degrees lower than the historical average,” AccuWeather Senior Director of Forecasting Operations DePodwin explained. “The last two Januarys in the Upper Midwest (Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan) have been well above the historical average spanning 1991-2020. January 2023 was 6.3 degrees above and January 2024 was 4.2 degrees above.”
AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Expert Paul Pastelok says waves of extreme cold could send AccuWeather RealFeel® temperatures tumbling to 10-20 degrees across parts of northern Florida, the Gulf Coast, and the Southeast late next week.
Pastelok says AccuWeather RealFeel® temperatures could plummet to -30 degrees in parts of the northern Plains and Upper Midwest late next week.
“The key here is that the Arctic outbreak will involve many days and not just be a quick one-to-three-day event. A trainload of Arctic high pressure areas will move southward into the U.S. from the northern Plains to the Southeast states with the pattern,” Pastelok said.
East Coast snowstorm on the horizon?
AccuWeather expert meteorologists are closely tracking the potential for a storm that could bring snow to Gulf Coast states and parts of the Southeast before moving into the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. 
“We have the potential of an East Coast snowstorm late next week. We could see snow and ice as far south as Texas,” Rayno said. “There are two scenarios with this storm. If the storm strengthens and moves up the East Coast, we could have a big problem. Arctic air on the backside could allow this to evolve into a significant snowstorm in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. If the storm remains weak and moves off the East Coast, we would see little to no snow.”
