Winter to hang on in U.S. Northeast

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STATE COLLEGE, Pa., Jan. 30 (UPI) -- The U.S. Northeast is likely to experience six more weeks of winter weather lasting into March, long-range forecasters at AccuWeather.com say.

The Northwest is also likely to have winter maintain its grip on the region, regardless of what Punxsutawney Phil has to say on Groundhog Day, forecasters said.

A couple of winter storms may impact the Northeast in February and March, they said.

"I think we could still see some late-season winter storms [in the Northeast]," AccuWeather lead long-range forecaster Paul Pastelok said.

Snow along the Interstate 95 corridor from Washington to New York City and Boston is not unusual, he said; "Typically, February to March is the season on the East Coast."

AccuWeather meteorologists said a stormier pattern, similar to what occurred in early December, is predicted for the Northwest, and snowfall could impact travel through the heavily traveled mountain passes of the region.

For the rest of the country, a near-normal tornado threat may be in store this spring especially across the Mississippi and Tennessee valleys, AccuWeather said, while another warm spring is expected across the Plains and Rockies.

Drought is expected to continue in the hardest-hit areas, it said, with extreme and exceptional drought conditions gripping Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and portions of Texas.