New Jersey could be in store for some accumulating snow on Saturday as a block of cold air moves in for the weekend
It looks like Old Man Winter isn't finished with us yet.
After dealing with traditional April showers on Thursday, and a cloudy, breezy day on Friday, New Jersey could be in store for some accumulating snow on Saturday as a block of cold air moves in for the weekend, forecasters said.
A fast-moving clipper system from Canada is expected to drift across the Great Lakes and sweep east across the Garden State late Friday, bringing light snow after midnight and during the day on Saturday to most of the northern half of the state, the National Weather Service said.
The state's northeastern region -- Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Union counties -- could end up with 2 to 3 inches of snow before the storm moves away Saturday evening, the weather service said. About 1 to 2 inches of snow is possible in Hunterdon, Morris, Somerset, Sussex and Warren counties, as well as northern Middlesex County.
Here are the preliminary snowfall projections for Saturday, April 9. (National Weather Service) The rest of the state will likely see all rain or a mix of snow and rain, said Sarah Johnson, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service's regional office in Mount Holly.
"We probably won't see too much sticking to the roads," Johnson said, because ground temperatures will be fairly warm on Friday before the storm arrives and the sun angle is higher in April than it is during the winter.
Active 2016 hurricane season possible
Although snow is not typical of April weather in New Jersey, it is not unprecedented.
The latest measurable snowfall on record in Newark was on April 23, in 1986, Johnson said. In Atlantic City, the latest measurable snowfall was April 24, in 1956.
New Jersey was hit with a large snowstorm on April 6 and April 7 in 1982, which blanketed most central and northern counties with 4 to 10 inches, and some northern sections with 10 to 20 inches.
Oh, and there is snow in the forecast for Saturday. #WishThatWasAnAprilFoolsJokeButNot pic.twitter.com/KbjRUkz1Q0
-- Gary Szatkowski (@GarySzatkowski) April 7, 2016
Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @LensReality. Find NJ.com on Facebook.