Coldest blast of winter, and up to 8 inches of snow, coming on New Year’s Day

The coldest weather of this winter will arrive on New Year’s Day, with wind chills expected to reach 10 or more degrees below zero by morning and snowfall reaching up to 8 inches during the day.

The National Weather Service has placed more or less the southern half of the Iowa — including Cedar Rapids and Iowa City — under a winter storm warning that runs from 6 a.m. to midnight Saturday.

It warns that areas within the warning area will see between 4 and 8 inches of snow, leading to treacherous travel. Wind gusts could reach 35 mph. The areas outside the warning area, including Waterloo and Dubuque, will see about 2 to 4 inches of snow.

“If you must travel, keep an extra flashlight, food and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency,” the weather service cautioned.

Forecasters said the storm will blow in Friday night with chances of freezing rain and fog, then give over to heavy and blowing snow particularly after 8 a.m. Saturday.

By Sunday, forecaster said, the snow should have stopped falling but it will again be cold — with a high around 6 or 7 above zero.