The time to prep for a power outage is before the storm hits. It gets cold and dark when the power goes out. It’s a great idea to keep a few LED flashlights or battery-powered lanterns in easy-to-find spots around your home. Lots of people will light candles during a blackout, but those are serious fire hazards.

As temperatures rapidly fall Thursday, patchy ice could create hazardous travel conditions, particularly in areas northwest of Interstate 95, forecasters note.

Messy winter weather brought snow, ice, freezing rain and dangerous driving to the New England states as the region prepared for more unpleasant conditions later in the week

A blizzard is a couple of giant steps above a winter storm. According to the National Weather Service, a storm officially qualifies as a blizzard when winds reach or exceed 35 mph and when the visibility drops to only a quarter mile or less. These conditions need to stay active for at least 3 hours.

Some light, scattered freezing rain is likely to fall starting around 8 p.m. and continuing through Wednesday morning.

LATEST FORECAST: Up to 8 inches of snow, nasty mix of sleet, freezing rain to slam state. Winter storm warnings expanded to 11 counties. Winter storm warnings and advisories have been issued for 19 New Jersey counties starting Friday afternoon with a ...