deWinter Storm Gerri Prompts Blizzard Warnings In Parts Of Midwest, Great Lakes

Winter Storm Gerri has prompted blizzard warnings in parts of the Midwest and Great Lakes as snow and strong winds combine to create dangerous travel conditions.

The National Weather Service in Des Moines, Iowa, remarked that "storms of this magnitude are fairly rare with recurrence around once or twice per decade," in a blizzard warning issued by the office Thursday afternoon.

Blizzard and winter storm warnings are in effect for millions: The blizzard warnings (shaded pink above) include parts of eastern South Dakota, Iowa, northeast Nebraska, northwest Illinois, northern Wisconsin and northern Michigan. Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Des Moines, Iowa, and Green Bay, Wisconsin are some of the cities that are included in those warnings and travel should be avoided.

Winter storm warnings are also in effect for heavy snow and strong winds in other parts of the Midwest and Great Lakes, including Chicago, Milwaukee, Omaha, Nebraska, and Grand Rapids, Michigan. While these areas aren't predicted to reach blizzard criteria, they will also see snow and strong winds contributing to poor visibility and dangerous travel conditions.

Here's the latest timing for this winter storm: Snow will spread from eastern Nebraska to Michigan on Friday and Friday night. Travel should be avoided in many of these areas because of the snowfall and strong winds. Strong winds and leftover snow showers will linger in the Great Lakes and upper Midwest on Saturday as the storm pulls away.

The Northeast will see snow or a mix of rain and snow across interior parts of the region late Friday into Saturday. The Interstate 95 corridor will likely see another round of heavy rainfall. Flooding is possible, especially in locations where the ground is already saturated from heavy rain earlier this week that fell on snowpack from last weekend's winter storm.

Strong winds will accompany the storm across a wide area: As the low pressure deepens, winds will increase across the central and eastern U.S. Strong winds will crank up in the Midwest on Friday and continue into Saturday as Gerri departs the region. The combination of gusty winds and snowfall will reduce visibility and lead to hazardous travel conditions. Near-whiteout conditions are possible in portions of the Plains.

The Northeast can expect another round of strong winds from Friday night into Sunday.

Tree damage and power outages are possible impacts from the winds in the Midwest and parts of the Northeast.