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School delays opening Tuesday by two hours; 8 to 10 inches of snow forecast for East End

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COURTESY MAP Suffolk County and portions of southern Connecticut are under a winter storm warning, starting Monday night.
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COURTESY MAP Suffolk County and portions of southern Connecticut are under a winter storm warning, starting Monday night.

At 3:30 p.m. the Shelter Island School announced: “At this time, we are calling a two hour Delayed Opening for tomorrow, Tuesday, March 13. As the night goes on, we will continue to watch the weather forecast to determine if a closure is necessary. If a closure is deemed necessary, you will receive another message from us.”

Suffolk County is under a winter storm warning with 8 to 10 inches in the forecast for the East End.

The winter storm warning is in effect from 8 p.m. Monday to 6 p.m. on Tuesday for southeast New York and portions of southern Connecticut.

Tim Morrin, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Upton, said,  “This is a true coastal storm staying off shore so that the precipitation would be the heaviest closer to the storm track and that would be the East End.

“Any deviation of the track will change those numbers,” he said. “A track further east would bring the precipitation east with it . . . a track further to the west, closer to the coast, will increase the numbers on the East End.”

There is a 1 out of 10 chance that the East End could see up to 15 inches of snow — but that’s the worst case scenario, he said.

The National Weather Service said travel conditions will be difficult, especially during the morning commute on Tuesday and there will be limited visibility. Heavy winds may cause tree branches to fall.

The week started off sunny with highs near 44 expected.

Monday night will bring rain and snow before 10 p.m., turning to all snow afterwards. The low will be around 32. It will be breezy with a north wind 15 to 21 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. About 3 to 5 inches of snow accumulation is possible, the NWS said.

Snow will fall on Tuesday, mainly before 2 p.m., with another 3 to 5 inches possible. Temperatures will reach a high near 38. Winds will be out of the northwest at 20 to 25 mph, with gusts as high as 39 mph.