Tuesday snowstorm should bring less than an inch, NWS says

Tuesday's snow, while coming on top of two major snowstorms in recent days, should bring less than an inch, the National Weather Service said in its latest briefing Monday afternoon.

"A quick moving weak low moves through the region Tuesday. A light accumulating snow is expected with less than an inch on Long Island, 1-2 inches for the NYC metro including NE NJ, with 2 to 4 inches across northern interior sections," the briefing said.

The weather service Monday downgraded the amount of snow expected, which was previously 1 to 3 inches. Still, forecasters warned: "Lingering light snow and untreated roads could create slippery travel during the Tuesday evening commute."

It added that the snow could begin Monday night and will continue through Tuesday, with rain mixing in near the coast Tuesday morning, then tapering off from west to east Tuesday evening.

And there is more winter mayhem to come.

There is a 30% to 40% chance of more snow events Thursday and Friday but both are expected to be moderate, forecasters said.

Then, for four days starting Friday, arctic air will return, giving Long Island highs in the 20s and the teens or lower at night, according to the weather service.

Monday, Long Islanders still had to cope with the icy conditions left in the wake of the two major storms, coating many of Long Island's roadways and crunching underneath pedestrians' feet.

Temperatures were in the high 20s for most of Long Island Monday afternoon, going down to the teens Monday night.

Even with some melting from the sun Monday, the chill meant driving remained treacherous in spots on some secondary and tertiary routes, depending on how plowing and salting was done in each jurisdiction, according to weather service meteorologist Brian Ciemnecki.

Sunday, for about nine hours, the second snowstorm in a week roared through Long Island, leaving up to nine inches behind on top of the remnants of last week's system.

Unlike the three-day storm that blanketed the region with up to 18 inches of heavy crusty snow last week, Sunday's system was quick-moving with light, powdery snow that didn't stop the LIRR from operating and kept plow drivers busy but not overwhelmed.

New York State said it would reschedule coronavirus vaccine appointments made for Sunday at Stony Brook University and Jones Beach, and Nassau County said it would reschedule Yes We Can Community Center and Nassau Community College appointments.

The Long Island Rail Road was running normally, without delays on Monday, said Marisa Baldeo, a spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

After running with 45-minute delays Sunday afternoon, the Nassau Inter-County Express bus system was operating on schedule again by Sunday night, according to the system’s Twitter account.

With Matthew Chayes