textproduct: Grand Rapids

KEY MESSAGES

- Brief period of light snow this afternoon/evening

- Mixed rain/snow and windy Thursday night/Friday

- Rain/snow/freezing rain/chance of thunder Sunday, then colder

DISCUSSION

Issued at 220 PM EDT Wed Mar 11 2026

- Brief period of light snow this afternoon/evening

Radar shows light rain moving back into the cwa from the southwest this afternoon just behind a cold front. In fact, the light rain will likely end as a brief period of light snow this evening. Then, HREF cloud progs show skies clearing from west to east after midnight. We should see some sunshine Thursday morning and early afternoon before mid/high clouds move over the cwa ahead of the next clipper.

- Mixed rain/snow and windy Thursday night/Friday

The aforementioned clipper is fairly potent and deepening as it moves toward Michigan. Light snow is expected to develop over the northern cwa Thursday evening in the warm advection wing of the clipper, then change over to some light rain south of I-96, before ending as light snow Friday once the cold front moves through. Accumulations 3-5 inches of snow are possible north of M-57 Thursday night and Friday, tapering to less than an inch from Muskegon to Lansing.

Both the ECMWF and GFS ensembles are (and have been for several model runs) showing strong winds in the boundary layer late Thursday night and Friday, generally 55-60 mph. Strong winds like this may hinder cleanup efforts in areas hard hit by recent storms.

- Rain/snow/freezing rain/chance of thunder Sunday, then colder

Once the precipitation ends late Friday, Saturday will see some sunshine. But, it won't last long because another strong spring storm will arrive Sunday. Rain, snow, freezing rain, and thunder (across the south half of the cwa) are all possible. And some of it may be heavy. Some models show quite a bit of ice across the northern cwa followed by snow, and a mix of that farther south. Spatial and temporal resolutions remain to be worked out, but this is shaping up as an impactful storm.

Temperatures behind the system Monday and Tuesday will only be in the mid to upper 20s.

AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z FRIDAY/

Issued at 150 AM EDT Thu Mar 12 2026

Improvement to VFR has occurred with skies clearing out. May be some scattered daytime cloud development but likely above 3,000 feet. West winds will also gust up to about 20-25 knots during the middle of the day.

HYDROLOGY

Issued at 220 PM EDT Wed Mar 11 2026

Heavy rain has ended across the cwa, but light rain will move northeast across the region late this afternoon and turn to light snow before ending this evening. Only a couple hundredths of an inch of precipitation are expected this afternoon. We canceled the flood watch; additional areal flooding is not expected. Earlier this morning, a flood warning was issued for the Maple River at Maple Rapids for an anticipated crest around 10 ft Friday afternoon; a gradual fall is expected leading into the weekend.

GRR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

MI...None. MARINE...None.