Weather service advises to prepare for possible blizzard conditions this week

SIDNEY - A new round of winter storm watches issued early Sunday morning included the majority of the Nebraska Panhandle and northeast Colorado.
The National Weather Service office in Cheyenne says blizzard conditions will be possible during the weather event with a total of five to eight inches of snow in the forecast for the Sidney and Scottsbluff areas. Winds could gust as high as 55 mph.
The Chadron area could see up to 6 to 12 inches of snow, according to the weather service. Dawes, Sioux, and Sheridan Counties are included in a blizzard warning.
The winter storm watch includes Banner, Box Butte, Cheyenne, Deuel, Garden, Kimball, Morrill, and Scotts Bluff Counties in Nebraska. It stretches into southwest, north central Nebraska, including Arthur, Keith, and Perkins Counties. Logan, Sedgwick, and Phillips Counties in northeast Colorado are also included in the watch. The winter storm watch is in effect from Monday afternoon through Wednesday evening.
The winter storm watch covers a large swatch of area from Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming to the Dakotas, Montana, and Minnesota.
The NWS says to prepare for possible blizzard conditions. Morning and evening commute travel could become very difficult, because of reduced visibility in blowing snow. The strong winds could also cause tree damage.
Snow is likely to begin falling at 11 p.m. Monday night, according to the weather service. They say one to three inches. Patchy blowing snow is possible after 2 a.m. with winds gusting as high as 50 mph. Low temperatures will be around 11 with wind chill values between -10 and zero degrees.
Snow is expected to continue into Tuesday and Tuesday night with a high near 22 and a low around 10. It'll be windy with gusts as high as 55 mph. Snow will begin to taper off late Tuesday night into Wednesday.
Blustery conditions, with areas of blowing snow, remain in the forecast through Friday. High temperatures don't escape the mid-20s all week.