Detroit Forecast: Winter Storm Watch issued for part of Southeast Michigan

DETROIT – Rain in Southeast Michigan is expected to quickly transition to snow early Wednesday. These light snow showers are forecast to linger into the afternoon.

This could mean snow accumulations of just a dusting in some areas to a half inch in other locations. Some localized amounts could reach one inch of snow.

Farther north, a Winter Storm Watch remains in effect for eastern Huron and northeastern Sanilac counties through Thursday morning. In this area, heavy lakeshore snow bands could lead to 5 to 7 inches of snow.

Much colder air is moving into the region late this week and into next weekend. Thursday morning’s wind chills could drop to negative single digits for most areas.

Here are the forecast highlights for the Detroit area from the National Weather Service:

Light snow showers are expected across Southeast Michigan Wednesday morning before an Arctic airmass pushes lake moisture further south. Most areas will see minimal additional snowfall, with accumulations of just a dusting.

The eastern Thumb region is the exception. A winter storm watch has been issued for eastern Huron and northeastern Sanilac counties, where snowfall totals could reach 5 to 7 inches by Thursday morning. North-northwest winds are expected to draw Lake Huron banding over areas along and east of a Port Austin-Port Sanilac line from late Wednesday afternoon through early Thursday morning.

The core of the Arctic airmass will settle over the central Great Lakes Wednesday through Thursday. Thursday morning lows are forecast to fall into the single digits, with wind chills ranging from zero to 10 below zero. Thursday afternoon highs will struggle to reach the low 20s, with some areas in the Thumb expected to top out only in the teens.

Temperatures will moderate slightly Friday ahead of another weather system dropping out of northern Canada. This Clipper system is expected to bring widespread accumulating snowfall of 1 to 2 inches on Friday, followed by scattered lake effect snow showers and flurries. Arctic air will return for the weekend.