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High Country Bracing for Another Round of Snow; Winter Storm Warning Issued until 8 a.m. Thursday

By Nathan Ham

Tuesday marks the first day of spring with the season change being official at 12:15 p.m. this afternoon. Based on the weather forecast, however, the nice spring weather will have to wait.

The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Warning that goes into effect at midnight and lasts through 8 a.m. Thursday morning.

Temperatures will drop throughout the day on Tuesday with precipitation expected to move in this afternoon in the form of rain. The rain is expected to turn to snow around midnight and continue through the day on Wednesday before tapering off Wednesday night into Thursday morning.

Snowfall is predicted to range from 3-6 inches in most of the High Country with higher western facing slopes and areas along the North Carolina and Tennessee border receiving the most snow, according to the National Weather Service.

More snow means more opportunities for missed school in the High Country. Watauga County Schools have already missed 18 days and with another decent snow accumulation possible, that total reaching 20 is not out of the question. The last time Watauga County students missed at least 20 days of school was during the 2012-13 school year, and much like this year, the bulk of the missed days came near the end of winter. Students missed 13 days of school combined in February and March of 2013.

For updated forecasts throughout the storm, visit Ray’s Weather.