CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Most of West Virginia will pick-up significant snow accumulation through Thursday afternoon from a winter storm that got its start in Georgia Wednesday. By late Wednesday night southern coalfield counties and the Greenbrier Valley had already received several inches.
The National Weather Service has more than a third of the state under a winter storm warning. It added Mingo, Boone and Lincoln counties to the list Wednesday night. Kanawha and counties up the I-79 corridor remained under a winter weather advisory.
The heaviest accumulations will likely be in the higher elevations from Beckley to Elkins.
“If you’re on that up-slope side of the eastern mountains, this could have quite an impact,” said Meteorologist Joe Merchant of the National Weather Service in Charleston.
Twenty-two counties had already closed schools for Thursday by late Wednesday night. Three other counties were to begin the day on two-hour delays with the list likely to grow.
The snow’s path took a westerly turn Wednesday afternoon causing forecasters to up snow accumulation predictions in some areas. The heaviest snow is expected to be gone by Thursday afternoon. A clipper system could dump another inch or two on the southcentral section of the state Friday.
It didn’t take long for accumulations to add up Wednesday night. Beckley had more than six inches of snow by 11 p.m.