Winter Weather Advisory issued for Friday

(TULSA, Okla.) A Winter Weather Advisory has been issued for parts of northeast Oklahoma and northwest Arkansas Friday. The Winter Weather Advisory will remain in effect from 5 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday for Benton, Carroll, Osage, Washington, Nowata, Craig, Ottawa, Pawnee, Tulsa, Rogers, Mayes, Delaware and Creek Counties. This includes the cities of Rogers, Bentonville, Berryville, Eureka Springs, Pawhuska, Bartlesville, Nowata, Vinita, Miami, Pawnee, Tulsa, Claremore, Pryor, Grove, Jay, and Sapulpa. Total sleet accumulations of a few tenths of an inch, and ice accumulations of a light glaze to near a tenth of an inch are expected. The public should plan on slippery road conditions, including during the morning commute. Bridges and overpasses will be the first to be impacted by any slick surfaces. A colder air mass will spread over the region Thursday night subfreezing temperatures largely confined to northeast Oklahoma and far northwest Arkansas by Friday morning. A fast moving wave will spread light precipitation across the region Friday beginning before sunrise across northeast Oklahoma and ending across northwest Arkansas around sunset. This will result in a mixture of freezing rain and sleet along the Oklahoma/Kansas border with a rain and freezing rain mix further south toward the Highway 412 corridor. The higher terrain of northwest Arkansas will limit the eastward push of the coldest temperatures and likely confine the bulk of frozen precipitation to locations nearer the Arkansas/Missouri border. Precipitation amounts continue to appear rather light but likely enough to produce slick spots, especially on elevated roadways. This may also impact the morning commute across northeast Oklahoma which would further stress driving impacts. Persistent cloud cover and a slowly modifying air mass will allow only a minor warm up Saturday. Another fast moving wave will pass Saturday night with areas of drizzle or light precipitation developing. It appears that measurable precipitation chances are low and any frozen types are largely confined to far northeast Oklahoma and far northwest Arkansas. The cold front will surge southward Sunday with renewed influence from the colder air mass, which will persist through early next week. A Tuesday/Wednesday storm system is showing potential for winter weather, though confidence in the system remains low. Temperatures are expected to remain below normal until late next week or weekend.