Warm and cold air clash in Pittsburgh as spring arrives

The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh posted a warning for icy roads after reporting that a heavy band of snow would be moving through the city throughout the day. All of this comes on the first day of spring.

National Weather Service Meteorologist David Shallenberger attributes this to the warring warm and cold fronts.

“This time of year we have spring returning, we have that clash of cold and warm air and we tend to get some instability with this stuff too,” Shallenberger said. “These snow showers feed off that.”

He said that in past years, most lakes would still be frozen or at least have some ice on them. This year, the ice has melted a bit early causing Western Pennsylvanians to see some additional snow showers that they normally wouldn’t this time of year. He said that it still isn’t uncommon.

“We’ll get these showers coming over the lake (from the north) and as they move south or southeast, they’ll start to hit our terrain,” Shallenberger said. “That’s where we start seeing these intense snow showers coming in.”

He emphasized that the weather is usually sporadic this time of year as spring moves in for its stay.

“Throughout Pittsburgh’s history we’ve had everything from a major severe weather event to a major snow storm during the month of March,” Shallenberger said. “It can be extremely volatile this time of year and that’s not uncommon.”

WTAE meterologist Ashley Dougherty echoed the statement that snow in spring isn’t something unexpected.

“It’s Pittsburgh,” she said. “It’s not uncommon to get snow showers through April. I think it may have been a bit shocking this morning because we have not had much snow this season.”

Dougherty said that because of the cold air coming out of the north or northwest region, any percipitation will be in the form of snow.

Shallenberger said that there isn’t much accumulation expected today once the first band of snow moves through the city. At most some places will see half inch. There’s a little more in store for Wednesday with some places expected to receive about an inch of snow.

He said that the best way for drivers to prepare for their commutes is to pay attention to the weather reports throughout the month so sporadic snow showers don’t catch them by surprise.

People can expect to see a little break from the cold with highs breaking 50 degrees as early as this weekend.