16 Inches of Snow Could Blanket the Region Monday

It’s been said March comes in like a lion. If that’s the case, northern New Jersey is about to hear a proverbial roar.

Meteorologists from Weather Works in Hackettstown, New Jersey, are saying a storm set to hit the area on Sunday afternoon will dump no less than six to eight inches of snow on the area, but are expecting a walloping of 10 to 16 inches before all is said and done Monday night.

“Everything north of Rt. 78 is basically the sweet spot for this storm,” Meteorologist Sam Dealba said Friday. “Even if the storm tracks differently, we’re seeing no less than six to eight (inches) of snow.”

Dealba said the storm, which will begin Sunday afternoon intermittently with snow and ice accumulating to about an inch, will begin to pick up steam between 7 p.m. and midnight. The snow will continue to intensify through the early hours of Monday morning and not end until close to midnight.

“The Monday morning commute is not going to be pretty,” Dealba said. “The same goes for the Monday evening commute, if there even is much of a commute.”

Temperatures Sunday will old between 28 and 32 degrees, and may be a touch warmer in northeaster New Jersey, Dealba said. The storm won’t be accompanied by the bone-chilling temperatures that the region has seen throughout this winter.

The 24-hour storm will certainly topple historic snowfall records in many areas, Dealba said. Despite the official start of spring just a few weeks away, the region will continue to see “cold blasts” sweeping through and below average temperatures until at least mid-March, Dealba said.