Unfortunately for those who are sick of snow, sleet and ice during what's been an especially harsh winter for much of the nation, the weather forecasters appear to have been right yet again.
The storm system that they said would bring some nasty precipitation to a stretch of the nation from Oklahoma all the way to the Mid-Atlantic has lived up to its billing.
A west-to-east look at headlines helps to tell the story:
— Oklahoma City. "Winter weather advisory in effect: Stay off roads if possible." (KFOR-TV)
— Memphis. "STORM UPDATES: More trees, power lines down; list of closures developing." (The Commercial Appeal)."
— Cincinnati. "Winter storm leaves roads a snowy, icy mess." (The Cincinnati Enquirer)
— Washington, D.C. "Heavy snow this morning, difficult travel; then frigid." (The Washington Post's Capital Weather Gang blog)
— Philadelphia. "An 'Upside Down' Winter Storm." (CBS Philly)
The National Weather Service says this "late season winter storm will continue to shift east through Monday. Heavy snow is forecast from the Ohio Valley into the Mid-Atlantic through Monday night making for hazardous travel conditions. Unseasonably cold temperatures more typical of January will prevail east of the Rocky Mountains for the next few days keeping winter around for a while longer."
As you would expect, schools are canceled in many of the affected towns and cities. Federal government offices are closed in Washington, D.C. Flight cancellations and delays are starting to build. FlightAware.com says that as the day began, more than 2,000 flights scheduled to depart from or land at U.S. airports had already been canceled today.
The system is the same one that drenched parts of California last week. The Weather Service says there will be "heavy rain over parts of the Pacific Northwest and Northern California" on Monday.
