Snow on the way to Eastern Iowa

CEDAR RAPIDS - More wintry weather is on the way this weekend.

Depending on where you are in Eastern Iowa, you might be hit by two different snow systems on Saturday and Sunday or one prolonged event, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Donna Dubberke. Either way, the end result is going to be the same.

'It's going to be a long, snowy weekend,” she said.

As of early Friday afternoon, the National Weather Service in the Quad Cities was predicting snow totals of 4 to 8 inches. Dubberke said confidence in that forecast is just 'average” at this point and snow falls could conceivably be higher.

Dubberke said snowfall is expected to begin Saturday afternoon. Temperatures are forecast to reach highs of 23 degrees and a low of 21. Snow is to continue Saturday evening, Dubberke said. A second snow system is expected to move in Sunday, but the timing of the event could make the entire weekend feel like one, long snowstorm, she added.

'You won't have much of a break in your area,” Dubberke said of Linn and Johnson counties.

Unlike last weekend's wet, heavy snow, Dubberke said this weekend's precipitation should be lighter and fluffier. That means it could blow around a little bit more, but winds aren't expected to be a problem, she said.

Temperatures are expected to hit a high of 29 on Sunday and a low Sunday night of 21. On Monday, the temperature is expected to reach 26 degrees.

'And then it gets really cold,” Dubberke said. 'Next week looks very cold with highs in the teens and lows in the single digits.”

Dubberke said the cold snap is expected to last at least until Thursday, which is as far as the National Weather Service has forecast.

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