Winter Storms Neptune And Octavia Could Bring Snow To North And South

As the northeast braced for a bitter blast this weekend, a second storm is expected to bring snow, ice and blizzard conditions to parts of the South by early next week. A winter storm was to hammer New England through Sunday. A second storm was expected to hit southern states with snow and ice starting Sunday night and could reach the northeast by Wednesday, weather forecasters predicted.

The first storm, dubbed Neptune by the Weather Channel, has already brought life-threatening, whiteout conditions to the upper Midwest, including parts of Illinois, Indiana Michigan and Ohio. Three people were killed in a 30-car pileup on a turnpike in Ohio Saturday due to treacherous road conditions, WOIO, Cleveland, reported.

Blizzard warnings were issued for several cities in the Northeast ahead of the storm, including Boston. Winter storm warnings were issued for parts of New York. Other cities, including New York City and Philadelphia, are under winter weather advisories for light to moderate snow and strong winds, which could turn into near blizzard conditions, the Weather Channel predicted.

New England is likely to see heavy snow, howling winds, coastal flooding and a sharp drop in temperatures Saturday night into Sunday. The storm could dump as much as 20 inches of snow on parts of New England, particularly along the coast of Maine. Light to moderate snowfall is expected further west in New England, the New York City area, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, forecasters said.

The winter storm's predicted intensity is as powerful as a Category 2 hurricane, the National Weather Service in Boston told USA Today. The storm has brewed from low pressure traveling southeast from the Great Lakes. It’s the latest storm in a three-week siege of record-breaking snowfalls in parts of New England such as Boston and Worcester, Massachusetts. Meteorologists predict 8-14 inches of snow for Boston on top of what remains from past storms, which brought a historic 70 inches of snow to the city, AccuWeather said.

"The storm could bring life-threatening conditions, especially in New England, with very low temperatures and strong winds combining with snow to bring blizzard conditions," AccuWeather senior meteorologist Henry Margusity reported.

National Guard troops will be deployed Saturday night in Boston, ready to remove massive snow piles that have buried the city for weeks. "They are actually ice glaciers right now, and we are working to remove those snow banks," Boston Mayor Marty Walsh told WCVB, Boston. "We are now looking at a truly historic accumulation for a 30-day period in the city of Boston."

Forecasters predict the southern storm, dubbed Octavia by the Weather Channel, will hit the Rockies, Southern Plains mid-South and the mid-Atlantic with snow, sleet and freezing rain. Winter storm watches from Sunday night into Monday have already been posted from southern Oklahoma through Arkansas and into Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama. The storm is likely to move north near the east coast by Wednesday, which means New York City and Boston could experience even more snow and ice, the Weather Channel forecasted.