Snow, Winter Weather Could Hit Hopatcong, Sparta

HOPATCONG, NJ —Hopatcong and Sparta residents could be facing between 2 and 4 inches of snow to arrive on Sunday night.

The wintry mix of snow, sleet, freezing rain and then rain is expected to make its way through the area Sunday night into Monday.

The National Weather Service originally forecast for Hopatcong and Sparta this weekend 3 to 7 inches of precipitation, but has lowered its predictions. It also reduced the previous Winter Storm Watch to a Winter Weather advisory.

As clouds roll in on very early Sunday morning, temperatures are expected to be around 1 degrees, then likely to hover at 28 during the day.

Having originally predicted snow to arrive after 1 a.m. into Monday, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday, snow is now expected to fall before midnight on Sunday, with sleet, freezing rain and then a changeover to rain after 1 a.m. heading into Monday. There is the possibility of overnight wind gusts up to 40 mph.

Temperatures on Monday are expected to rise to 39 degrees, with a chance of snow could yield up to one-quarter of an inch accumulation, plus wind gusts up to 30 mph.

Here’s the latest National Weather Service forecast into Monday for Hopatcong:

Through Sunday Morning: Clear, with a low around 1. North wind around 5 mph becoming calm.

Sunday: Increasing clouds, with a high near 28. Calm wind becoming east around 5 mph in the afternoon.

Sunday Night: Snow and sleet before 1am, then freezing rain between 1am and 2am, then rain after 2am. Temperature rising to around 37 by 5am. Breezy, with an east wind 5 to 10 mph increasing to 15 to 20 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 40 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Little or no ice accumulation expected. New snow and sleet accumulation of 2 to 4 inches possible.

Monday: Rain likely before noon, then a chance of snow. Cloudy, with a high near 39. South wind 10 to 15 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.

Monday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 22. West wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.

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