Syracuse, NY – If you woke up this morning to light snow or bare streets, continue to pay attention to:

According to the National Weather Service, the storm system expected to hit central New York this morning is still moving across the area.

It was a strange situation, the service said in its morning briefing.

“This is a unique storm system in that there will be intermittent breaks or lulls in the steady snow, even in counties under a winter storm warning,” the service said.

But at other times winds will increase, leading to squalls this afternoon and creating lake-effect snow during the commute this evening and into the evening – particularly from 4 to 7 p.m

“The main story from late afternoon through this evening will be that the lake effect snow machine is in full swing,” the service predicted.

Heavy and heavy snowfall is expected, with 4 to 9 inches of additional snow expected across the region by early Friday.

Winds will become stronger as the day progresses, the service said.

Wind gusts of up to 45 miles per hour are expected today, causing blowing and blowing snow that could make visibility difficult.

At the same time, temperatures are expected to drop into the high teens or lows below 20 degrees, making it even easier for the snow to blow around and cause whiteouts.

Tonight the forecast is for 21 degrees in Syracuse and 12 degrees in Ithaca.

Snow is expected to continue intermittently Friday through Saturday.

The total snowfall range for the next 48 hours remains large according to this morning’s forecast:

• Syracuse could reach 6 inches, but also up to 14 inches
• Oswego could get 5 inches, but up to 13 inches
• Areas of Onondaga County north of the highway could see 1 foot to more than 2 feet of snow

A winter storm warning remains in effect for several counties, including Chenango, Cortland, Jefferson, Lewis, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego and Otsego counties.