UPDATE: Most Local Schools and Government Offices Will Be Closed Tuesday With Up to A Foot Of Snow Expected In Parts of South Fork

UPDATE: Monday 6:41 p.m.

All Southampton Village, East Hampton Village and East Hampton Town offices will be closed on Tuesday due to the storm.

UPDATE: Monday 6 p.m.

The National Weather Service now says that the western parts of the South Fork could get up to a foot of snow on Tuesday morning and early afternoon and eastern regions like Montauk to as much as 8 inches.

The Southampton, East Hampton, Bridgehampton and Springs school districts have officially canceled school for Tuesday because of the expected snowfall — which could be the most the region has seen in at least two years.

The latest forecast updates from NWS have extended the predicted band of snowfall of 8-12 inches of snow as far east as Springs and northern Amagansett, and upped the forecast for Montauk to 6-8 inches.

Winds will gust over 40 miles per hour and are still forecast to be northerly, so coastal erosion along the ocean shoreline is not expected to be great but tides could more than 2 feet above normal because of the storm surge and some coastal flooding could take place along north facing shores.

ORIGINAL STORY:

The South Fork could see up to six inches of snow on Tuesday and snow fall rates of one to two inches per hour with strong winds and blowing snow creating hazardous conditions on local roads, the National Weather Service says.

While the East End is predicted to get the lowest total snowfall on Long Island — other areas west are expected to get up to eight or nine inches — the track of Tuesday’s storm will determine how much snow we end up getting.

National Weather Service meteorologist Bryan Ramsey says that the storm has generally tracked south of earlier predictions and if that continues, snowfall amounts will be on the higher end of the forecast range. Currently, the weather service is predicting about five inches of snow across most of the South Fork.

The storm’s impacts will begin Monday evening, but will bring only rain for the overnight hours, before changing to snow by morning. Heaviest snowfall is expected from late morning until early afternoon.

Ramsey says the hazards of the period of heaviest snow coming in the middle of the day will be exacerbated by strong winds that could create white-out conditions on rural roads adjacent to farm fields.

“We could see gusts to 40 mph out of the northeast and then changing to northwest, which can be a concern on roads during the period of heaviest snow,” he said.

The storm could cause some mostly minor coastal flooding along north-facing shorelines.

Some organizations have already announced closures due to the impending storm.

The East Hampton Food Pantry has announced that it will suspend it’s usual Tuesday pick-up day because of the expected snowfall, the first of what is expected to be extensive closures if the forecast snow amounts hold.

Check back for updates on closure announcements.