Our well-advertised winter storm finally fires up across the Commonwealth Thursday, it'll be a slow transition from rain to freezing rain and accumulating ice over to a brief shot of sleet and snow to cap it off over the next 24 hours.
Many will start the day with cold rain, and we'll watch the freezing line at the surface slowly track southeast from the Ohio River. The changeover to freezing rain looks to happen later in the day, late afternoon in Lexington.
Roads will likely ice up later in the day or early in the evening. Many people across the state will receive 1/4-1/2" of ice, and it will be less for those who live further south.
An ice storm warning, winter storm warning, winter weather advisory and flood watch for heavy rain all remain in effect Thursday into Friday. Watch for deteriorating road conditions Thursday afternoon into the evening as Arctic air seeps in. Falling tree branches and power outages will also be possible.
We're expecting ice accumulation from freezing rain in the 0.25" to 0.5" range in the Bluegrass, northern and western KY with lesser but still impactful amounts southeast. We'll also need to watch for localized flooding from heavy rain southeast.
