The National Weather Service in Fairbanks swapped Sunday's Winter Storm Watch for a Winter Weather Advisory Monday morning. The advisory runs from 10 a.m. Tuesday to 4 p.m. Wednesday and calls for 3 to 7 inches of snow around Fairbanks, Fox, Chatanika, Ester and Nenana, with light snow starting later Monday and the heavier stuff arriving Tuesday. Forecasters say blowing snow could cut visibility and make travel very difficult. See the current alerts and forecast from NWS Fairbanks.
Our take: a downgrade doesn't mean a day off from the shovel. The weather service is pretty upfront that nobody knows exactly where the heavy band will set up, and a shift of 30 miles east or west could be the difference between 6 inches in your driveway and barely 3. So the Monday prep list still stands. Plug in the car tonight, keep the scraper where you can find it, and leave early Wednesday morning in case the plows are still catching up. If your commute runs through Ester or Fox, give yourself a little extra time.
If you'd rather not be the one out there at 6 a.m., Good Hand Co. can line up snow removal in Fairbanks or North Pole. And when the wet boots start piling up by the door, The Alaska Cleaning Company can help get the floors and carpets back in shape.
Painting: Good Hand Co.