‘The first good shot of snow’ this season on the way for Tuesday; warnings, advisories cover much of state

© National Weather Service Forecasters expect the heaviest snow from a storm on Tuesday will be to the west of the Milwaukee metro area.

A strong winter storm is set to dump anywhere from 3 to 10 inches of snow across Wisconsin beginning Tuesday afternoon, with the highest snowfall amounts in the southwest part of the state, forecasters say. 

© National Weather Service Winter weather warnings and advisories cover nearly all of Wisconsin and portions of neighboring states as a strong winter storm is expected in the region Tuesday into Wednesday.

A winter weather advisory for 3 to 6 inches of snow is in effect for metro Milwaukee. The counties included in the advisory are Milwaukee, Waukesha, Washington, Ozaukee, Racine, Fond du Lac, Sheboygan, Dodge, Marquette, Green Lake, Jefferson, Walworth and Kenosha.

© National Weather Service Snow is expected on Tuesday across southern Wisconsin.

The advisory runs from 6 p.m. Tuesday to noon Wednesday.

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To the west, a winter storm warning has been issued from 4 p.m. Tuesday to noon Wednesday for southwest and south-central Wisconsin including Dane, Rock, Sauk, Columbia, Green, Iowa and Lafayette counties where 6 to 8 inches of snow is forecast, according to the National Weather Service. 

The precipitation could be mixed, “especially along and south of I-94,” the weather service said in a statement on Monday afternoon. That could lead to a “light glaze” of ice at some point as the storm moves through.  

“It’s the first good shot of snow that we’ve had,” this season, said Chris Stumpf, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sullivan.

Milwaukee has received just over a half-inch of snow so far this winter season, according to official weather service records. That’s 11 inches below normal. 

In southwest Wisconsin, a winter storm warning has been issued for Vernon, Grant, Richland and Crawford counties where upward of 10 inches could fall, the weather service said. 

“If you have travel planned Tuesday afternoon into Wednesday morning, consider changing your plans, especially if south of I-90,” the weather service office in La Crosse said in a statement issued at 2:30 p.m. Monday.

There is still some uncertainty as to the storm track. The path the storm takes will determine where the heaviest snow will fall, Stumpf said. 

© National Weather Service Far southeast Wisconsin could see a wintry mix on Tuesday.

Forecasters expect to have more of the details of the snowfall nailed down as the storm gets closer, Stumpf said. 

“Any little change in the track could have an impact on where the heaviest snow will fall,” Stumpf said. “We’ll be evaluating that today.” 

Northeast and east-central Wisconsin, including Green Bay, Appleton, Oshkosh, Stevens Point, Wausau, Wisconsin Rapids, Marshfield, Manitowoc and Door County are also expecting snow, according to the weather service.

Those areas are under a winter weather advisory beginning Tuesday night and continuing into Wednesday. 

© National Weather Service Snow is expected to overspread much of Wisconsin beginning Tuesday and continuing into Wednesday.

“About 3 to 6 inches of snow is possible with this system, however, snow amounts are likely to change over the next 24 hours,” the weather service office in Green Bay said in a statement.

“Be sure to monitor the forecast for updates, especially if you have plans to travel across the Midwest Tuesday and Wednesday,” according to the statement.

Winter storm warnings, watches and advisories on Monday covered all or parts of 13 states from mountain regions of California to the Great Lakes, according to the weather service. 

Contact Joe Taschler at (414) 224-2554 or jtaschler@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeTaschler or Facebook at facebook.com/joe.taschler.1.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: ‘The first good shot of snow’ this season on the way for Tuesday; warnings, advisories cover much of state