Georgetown, Del. (5:30 p.m. Mon., Feb. 16, 2015): Sussex County is in line for its first major bout with winter weather this season, as a southern-tracking storm pushing in from the Midwest is poised to bring at least a half-foot of snow, maybe more, to Southern Delaware through Tuesday morning before another blast of Arctic air rushes in for later in the week.

Snow is already beginning to fall in parts of the county late this Monday afternoon, and will pick up in intensity as the evening wears on. Snowfall, heavy at times, will continue during the overnight hours before tapering off by midday Tuesday. A winter storm warning remains in effect for Sussex County until 12 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 17.

National Weather Service forecasters predict snowfall totals of generally 6 to 10 inches of snow throughout the county by early Tuesday morning, with a deep layer of cold air that has chilled the region the past few days staying in place to keep it an all-snow event. Temperatures on Tuesday will top out around 28 degrees, and then fall to near zero by Thursday morning.

“While this is not an everything-grinds-to-a-halt blizzard like Boston has seen the past few weeks, this is still a healthy dose of snow and the public should plan accordingly. We will see snow-covered roads, possible power outages, all the effects of a typical winter weather event,” said Sussex County Emergency Operations Center Director Joseph Thomas. “People should avoid unnecessary travel and continue to monitor conditions.”

For updates on the storm or any emergency response, stay tuned to local media outlets, and be sure to follow the County’s Facebook and Twitter feeds, www.facebook.com/SussexCountyDE, www.facebook.com/SussexCountyEOC, twitter.com/sussexde_govt and twitter.com/SussexCtyDE_EOC.

###