A winter storm watch is in effect south of Louisville as National Weather Service forecasters anticipate more snow for Kentucky Friday, with higher amounts expected in the southern half of the state.

The watch, active until late Friday night, extends as far north as Hardin County and stretches into parts of southeastern and southwestern Kentucky. The weather service stated early Wednesday morning it expects to see 4-5 inches of snowfall Friday for counties in the watch area, with locally higher amounts possible.

In the Louisville metro area, 2-3 inches of new snowfall is possible. Current estimates show a 90% chance for at least inch of snow in Louisville Friday and a 10% chance for at least 4 inches. Evan Webb, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service, said 4 inches of snow looks like the “worst case scenario” for the city.

At least 4 inches of snow in the forecast is typically needed for the weather service to issue a winter storm watch or warning, Webb said, adding it appears to be “relatively likely” a winter storm warning will eventually be in effect for the area currently under the watch.

“If the trends in the data change, we could expand the winter storm watch a little further north if we need to,” Webb said.

Wednesday night and Thursday morning will be very cold in Louisville and there is a chance wind chills could plummet below zero, Webb said. However, cloud cover could serve as an “insulating blanket,” keeping the air temperature a little higher than it would be if it was a clear night.

If wind chills were to fall to -5 degrees or below, the NWS would issue a cold weather advisory.

“Prepare for round two, unfortunately,” Webb said. “It looks like the snow amounts will be quite a bit less than what we saw with the last storm. Certainly with some additional snow accumulations, it’s always good to be prepared.”

More: Will Louisville get more snow this week? NWS predicts more cold weather in Kentucky

Wednesday

Chance of flurries. Mostly cloudy and cold, with a high near 25. Calm winds from the west around 6 mph in the afternoon.

Wednesday Night

Mostly cloudy, with a low around 4. West winds of 5 mph become calm.

Thursday

Sunny and cold, with a high near 28.

Thursday Night

Partly cloudy, with a low around 14 and calm winds.

Friday

A 90% chance of snow showers, mainly after 1 p.m. A high near 29 with south winds of around 5 mph Friday afternoon. New snowfall amounts of between 1-2 inches is possible.

Friday Night

A 70% chance of snow showers, mainly before 1 a.m. Cloudy, with a low around 23.

Saturday

Mostly cloudy, with a high near 31.

Saturday Night

Mostly cloudy, with a low near 15.

Sunday

Partly sunny, with a high near 35.

Sunday Night

A 20% chance of snow showers after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low near 27.

Reporter Marina Johnson contributed.

Reach reporter Leo Bertucci at lbertucci@gannett.com or @leober2chee on X, formerly known as Twitter