Big snowstorm expected to hit the state tonight

Iowans are preparing for what could be a major snowfall. National Weather Service meteorologist Frank Boksa says a double-whammy is moving in. He says there’ll be “two shots, one will be coming late this afternoon and tonight and then the main event tomorrow.” Boksa says freezing rain will hit southern Iowa around five or six o’clock tonight. Boksa says the area south of Ottumwa along Highway 34 could see a quarter inch of ice as the storm moves north.He says that will be under four to six inches of snow by the time Thursday morning rolls around. He says in central and northern Iowa, we’re looking at eight to ten inches of snow and then north of Highway 20, there could be as much as a foot of snow. Boksa says the temperatures will cool off a little. He says a Canadian high pressure will drop south and we’ll see temperatures in the single digits for lows and mid teens to mid 20’s for highs. Boksa says it’ll warm up again Saturday — but that warmth will also bring some more snow.The predictions of lots of snow are prompting a run on stores that stock supplies like bags of crystals that melt ice and snow. Leslie Schark stopped at a store in Cedar Rapids for supplies. “I just wanted to start early and make sure we’re prepared because I know we don’t have a shovel at home right now,” Schark says. Leslie Moel is a clerk at a store in Cedar Rapids and she says snow-fighting supplies are flying off the shelves. “When the ice hit Saturday, it was pretty much movin’ and it hasn’t stopped movin’ since then,” she says.