Colder weather to close out 2015 locally

VW independent/submitted information

After a decidedly non-typical December, Van Wert County weather will get progressively more winterlike as 2015 comes to a close — it’s a trend that will likely be seen over most of the country.

Van Wert County Emergency Management Director Rick McCoy said that, while temperatures today will range from a high of 39, with a slight chance of snow flurries, to a low of 28, temperatures would begin to fall on New Year’s Eve, with a high of 33 and a low of 23, while New Year’s Day will see a high of 30 and a low of 20.

Those temperatures will continue early into the new year, with a high of 30 and a low of 22 on Saturday and a high of 30 and low of 22, and a high of 31 on Sunday.

Rain and snowfall will be largely absent for most of the United States as temperatures fall to a more typical level across the country, according to national weather experts.

Exceptions to the dry weather will be spotty snow and flurries downwind of the Great Lakes. Cities that may experience some snow include Sault Saint Marie and Kalamazoo, Michigan; South Bend, Indiana; Cleveland; Erie, Pennsylvania; and Buffalo and Watertown, New York.

In terms of rainfall, areas from northern and central Florida to the Georgia and Carolina coasts can expect some rain showers. Spotty showers will also affect part of South Texas.

Even though no precipitation is in the offing across much of the Midwest and Plains, there may still be travel trouble in the wake of the major storm that recently hit the area.

Major rivers will be on the rise and in flood stages over portions of Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Arkansas and Oklahoma. People will still be reeling from the aftermath of severe storms and tornadoes from the southern Plains to the Tennessee Valley.

Melting and refreezing in areas where there is extensive snow cover can lead to icy spots on secondary roads and sidewalks from New Mexico and western Texas to Minnesota and northern New England.

Meanwhile, chilly air will continue to hold on over much of the West.

Around midnight New Year’s Eve, temperatures will be within a few degrees of 50 degrees Fahrenheit in Los Angeles and falling through the 30s in Las Vegas. The temperature will be close to the freezing mark in Seattle.

Temperatures in much of the central United States will be lower than they have been during many calendar days in November and December.

Gusty winds will add to the chill around the Great Lakes and northern Plains.