weather

The first significant snowstorm of the season is on its way to Genesee County, according to the National Weather Service, which has issued a severe storm warning for the area.

The lake effect snow warning takes effect from 7 p.m., Sunday, through noon, Monday.

Storm totals over night are expected to be from three to five inches, with another one to three inches Monday for a storm total of four to eight inches.

Winds will be 30 to 40 mph with gusts up to 60 mph.

White-out conditions are expected and visibility will be reduced at times to less than a quarter of a mile.

Temperatures will be in the 30s.

UPDATE 5:22 p.m.: The storm total has been revised to 6-10 inches of snow.

In Batavia today, it looks like we're getting hit with our first real winter storm -- as minor as it is, it's still a bit more of a storm than the previous snow showers.

The National Weather Service even issued a weather advisory in effect until 6 p.m., though it looks like the current snow front will pass out of the area around noon.

One to three inches of snow is predicted.

There are hazards from blowing snow -- winds up to 35 mph -- and freezing roadways.

While temperatures are in the low 20s, the wind chill could drop the "feels like" temp to single digits.

I can't say I've had my ear glued to the scanner 100 percent of the time this morning, but so far, not much in the way of traffic accidents (knock on wood), which is a bit out of the ordinary for a first snowstorm in WNY.

Snow is predicted for at least part of each of the next five days.

Photos submitted by Doug Yeomans. He said they were taken about 4:30 p.m. in East Bethany.

Batavia, which has seen very little snowfall so far this winter, got a light dusting Saturday morning.

The forecast calls for a 30-percent chance of snow from 5 to 7 p.m. and the 10-day forecast predicts a couple more days of light snow in the next week and a chance of rain and snow on Dec. 25.

Careful driving this morning: Untreated roads are slick.

Above, St. Mary's. Below, Austin Park.

When I drove by DeWitt Park this morning, about an hour after the snow stopped falling, the lake was covered with geese. Of course, when I moved in close for a picture, they paddled toward the other shore, but it was still an impressive site.

As for the winter storm watch/warning, it's been downgraded to a winter storm warning. The radar map predicts some snow for Batavia around 2 p.m. and a bit heavier band of snow hitting around 5:30 p.m.

The warning is in effect until 6 p.m.

A lake effect snow warning has been issued by the National Weather Service, with the worst of it for Genesee County in the area of Alabama and Oakfield.

The warning is in effect until 6 p.m., Friday.

Accumulations of two to four inches overnight and four to six inches Friday in the areas of heaviest snowfall are predicted.

Portions of Erie County are expected to be the hardest hit.

Visibility during heavy parts of the storm will be reduced to a quarter mile.

The worst driving conditions are expected to be during the morning commute.

A precautionary note from the NWS:

IF YOU LOSE POWER AND PLAN ON RUNNING A GENERATOR...MAKE SURE THAT THE GENERATOR IS LOCATED OUTDOORS AND IS PROPERLY VENTILATED. SPACE HEATERS SHOULD ALSO BE PROPERLY VENTILATED AND USED ONLY IF THEY ARE OPERATING PROPERLY. MAKE SURE SNOW DOES NOT BLOCK EXHAUSTS AND FRESH AIR INTAKES FOR HIGH EFFICIENCY FURNACES AND WATER HEATERS.

Winter is setting in, but local photographer Marlene Morris still found some signs of life in her own backyard yesterday and sent in these pictures to share with us.

We got about 20 minutes of heavy, blowing snow in Downtown Batavia this afternoon. There is no visible accumulation, but it looked like a good amount blowing through the sky. The forecast for the rest of the day is no more than 20-percent chance of precipitation. It should be sunny tomorrow.

There have been several minor vehicle accidents on the Route 19 bridge over the Thruway in the past 20 or 30 minutes.

Law enforcement on scene has requested Le Roy fire police to respond and shut down Route 19 at Griswold Road and at North Road.

Fire crews will be able to roll over the bridge to get in position, but will need to proceed very, very slowly.

Road crews are being dispatched to the bridge to salt the road.

There are at least three, and probably more, accidents being handled by troopers.

Only minor injuries have been reported.

We're not quite out of October, there's still leaves on some trees, but snow is in the forecast a little more than 24 hours from now.

There's a 70-percent chance of precipitation, according to the forecast, for Thursday night, with temperatures dipping to 30 degrees.

At this point, there's no prediction of a strong storm -- just cold and wet.

Western New Yorkers should prepare for a wetter and colder than average winter.

That could mean some dramatic storms, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Erie County, especially, should see colder and wetter whether, but the harsh winter could reach into Genesee County.

If the prediction is true, Genesee County will be wetter than usual. Whether that means more snow is uncertain.

For the second year in a row, a La Niña atmospheric condition will impact weather throughout the United States, according to NOAA.

That means the Southwest will be drier than normal and northern parts of the United States will be wetter than usual.

The wild card in the winter weather predictions is "Arctic oscillation."

The oscillation will effect whether parts of the country, including WNY, will be cooler or warmer than average, or just average.

NOAA says that Arctic oscillation is hard to predict and its impact on weather can't be read more than two weeks ahead of time.

Arctic oscillation, which pushes colder air into the United States, can have dramatic impacts on winter weather.

From the NOAA site:

• Northeast and Mid-Atlantic: equal chances for above-, near-, or below-normal temperatures and precipitation. Winter weather for these regions is often driven not by La Niña but by the arctic oscillation. If enough cold air and moisture are in place, areas north of the Ohio Valley and into the Northeast could see above-average snow;
• Great Lakes: tilt toward colder and wetter than average.

A rainbow spotted off Bank Street Road, Batavia. Photo submitted by Diane Deleo.

There have been sporadic power outages in Genesee County today due to high winds.

The largest local power outage is in Elba in the area of Ford Road and Bank Street Road, with 53 customers without power. Electricity has been out since 2:02 p.m. and is expected to be restored by 4:30 p.m.

An outage in Le Roy on the west side of the village put 44 customers in the dark, but power was recently restored, according to National Grid.

There are also small outages in South Byron and West Batavia.

UPDATE 4:36 p.m.: It turns out, power is still out on the west side of the Village of Le Roy. There is no ETA for power restoration. Also, a power line is reportedly down on Beckwith Road, Batavia. East Pembroke Fire Department dispatched. A tree has fallen. The lines are off the roadway, but they are burning. National Grid being notified.

High winds are expected to hit Western New York, including Genesee County, at 10 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.

A wind advisory is in effect until 7 p.m.

Winds will hit 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph.

Winds of these speeds can cause minor property damage, bring down tree limbs and cause scattered power outages.

Drivers of high-profile vehicles should proceed with caution.

There's only a 10-percent chance of rain through most of the day, skies will be partly cloudy with a high of 60 degrees.

For such a beautiful, unseasonably warm fall day, a holiday, it sure was quiet in Dewitt Park today.

The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for parts of Genesee County, including Batavia and Le Roy, from now until 1:30 p.m.

Winds could reach 60 mph with quarter-size hail and cloud-to-ground lightning.

While no part of tropical storm Irene -- surely, you've heard about it by now -- is expected to reach Genesee County, National Grid is mobilizing all of its resources to respond to the potential havoc the storm could bring to the state's power system.

Reader Paul Schwartzmeyer spotted this caravan of National Grid line trucks heading east on the Thruway through Genesee County this morning.

We also received this press release from National Grid. The power company says the storm could disrupt natural gas and power transmission in Upstate New York.

Press Release:

ALBANY, NY -- National Grid is actively preparing for the potential effects of Hurricane Irene, which meteorologists currently expect to reach the northeast this weekend.

Depending on Irene's track, portions of National Grid's Upstate New York service area could experience damaging winds, heavy rain and flooding that could cause power outages and affect the natural gas delivery system.

National Grid already has activated its storm emergency plan, which includes calling in extra crews; pre-staging crews and materials to areas anticipated to be most severely impacted; reaching out to customers, including those on life support, to urge them to prepare for the storm; identifying low-lying, flood-prone areas and facilities for monitoring and potential isolation; holding multiple planning calls; and ensuring that key areas such as operations and customer call centers are appropriately staffed.

National Grid also is reaching out to state, regional and local officials to inform them of advance plans and keep the lines of communications open before, during and after the storm.

"We know that our customers always depend on us to restore their electricity or gas service as quickly as possible, and especially during major storms," said Ellen Smith, National Grid chief operations officer.

"We are hard at work preparing for whatever Irene may bring and will keep our customers informed throughout this event. We also want our customers to be ready for Irene, and urge them to start preparing now so they will be safe during and after the storm."

National Grid offers the following tips for customers to minimize inconvenience and maximize safety in the event that storm-related service interruptions do occur:

Keep National Grid's power outage reporting number handy -- 1-800-867-5222 (Upstate New York) -- in case it's needed.

Natural gas customers should call 1-800-892-2345 to report gas emergencies for Upstate New York.

Customers also can stay in touch with National Grid by following the company on Facebook, Twitter and on our website www.nationalgridus.com.

Power outage information also is available on the company website at www.nationalgridus.com. At the site, go to "Outage Central," and select your state.

Listen for important announcements on television and radio from emergency officials about possible evacuations or other emergency procedures.

Keep a number of working flashlights, extra batteries and at least one battery-operated radio since National Grid provides news media with timely information regarding service restoration efforts.

If you depend on electric-powered life-support equipment, such as a respirator, make sure that you have notified National Grid. If you have a medical emergency always dial 9-1-1.

Prepare a family emergency kit that includes, at least water, a three-day supply of food, a can opener, first-aid kit, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation, wrench or pliers to turn off utilities, local maps, cell phones with chargers, prescription medications and glasses, matches in a waterproof container, paper and pencil.

Customers using generators should make sure their wiring system is disconnected from the system before operating the generator. When using a portable generator, make sure the main circuit breaker in the electric service panel box is in the "off" position.

If you have a fuse box instead of breakers, pull out the main block, remove the fuses and reinsert the empty block. This is necessary to prevent your generator's electricity from going back into the system, which could endanger the lives of line crews and your neighbors. Also, it's required by the National Electrical Code.

Be sure to only use generators outdoors. Exhaust fumes contain poisonous carbon monoxide and can kill or cause serious injury.

Before lowering a TV antenna or satellite dish, make sure to turn off and unplug the TV, and avoid power lines.

Turn your refrigerator and freezer to their coldest settings ahead of time to keep food fresh longer in the event of a power outage.

Prepare your business by securing the exterior of your building. Inside, cover and move equipment and furniture to a secured area. Protect data with backup files. Make plans for supplies and services so that you are prepared to work with limited supplies of cash, water, sewer or power for at least two weeks.

National Grid is an international energy delivery company. In the U.S., National Grid delivers electricity to approximately 3.3 million customers in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Rhode Island, and manages the electricity network on Long Island under an agreement with the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA).

It is the largest distributor of natural gas in the Northeastern U.S., serving approximately 3.4 million customers in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Rhode Island. National Grid also owns over 4,000 megawatts of contracted electricity generation that provides power to more than one million LIPA customers.

A severe thunderstorm watch has been issued for Genesee County starting at 5 a.m., Thursday.

UPDATE 10:56 p.m.: The National Weather Service is now issuing a severe thunderstorm warning from NOW until midnight. Winds up to 60 mph are expected.

Batavia was visited by a pretty spectacular rainbow this evening. Here's two pictures. If you took pictures of the rainbow, mail them to howard (at) the batavian (one word) dot com. We'll add them to this post.

Reader submissions:

No name attached with this submission.

Submitted anonymously.

Submitted by Diane Cox.

Submitted by Janet Richardson.

Submitted by Brett English. He said, "This was taken off my Dad's porch in Darien while we were parking cars for the concert."

Submitted by Nate Fix. Taken at the Darien Lake Performing Arts Center.

Submitted by Lusanne Simard.

Submitted by Ashlie Hackett.

Submitted by Walt Kershenski, Stafford Town Clerk.

The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for the southwestern portion of Genesee County until 1 p.m. It's said to be capable of producing quarter-size hail and damaging winds of up to 60 MPH. It's now moving in an easterly direction from Hamburg at a rate of 35 MPH.

The weather service says: "This is a dangerous storm. If you are in the path, prepare immediately for damaging winds, destructive hail, and deadly cloud-to-ground lightning. People outside should move to a shelter, preferably inside a strong building but away from windows."