Double Whammy – Winter Storm Takes Aim at Missouri Thursday Night

Missouri and Illinois have barely been able to catch their breath from the winter storm that hammered both states this week, but there's another possibly worse system that has taken aim at northeast Missouri and west-central Illinois beginning Thursday night.

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Computer models have shown it was possible and now the National Weather Service in St. Louis is saying it's likely. A winter storm with very high winds and plenty of snow will begin barreling through Missouri and Illinois starting Thursday night.

While the NWS graphic shows more than 4 inches of snow is likely for northeast Missouri and west-central Illinois, if you look at the specific forecast for Hannibal, it shows up to 7 inches of snow could happen.

The combination of wind, snow and a drastic drop in temperatures of almost 30 degrees puts this storm in the realm of what some would call a "bomb cyclone". The National Weather Service defines a "bomb cyclone" as "it is a drop of at least 24 millibars (24 hectopascals) over 24 hours". The system that will explode over Missouri and Illinois late this week will possibly come close to that.

Whatever snow and wind this storm system drops on Missouri and Illinois, it will be followed immediately by bitter sub-zero temperatures. Brace yourself. We're in for a super-cold weekend that may have a lot more snow on top of it. Winter has officially made its presence known in both Missouri and Illinois for 2024.