Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 218 PM EST Wed Dec 02 2020 Valid 00Z Thu Dec 03 2020 - 00Z Sat Dec 05 2020 ...Heavy snow possible across portions of Kansas, Oklahoma, and the Texas Panhandle through Thursday morning... ...Extremely Critical Fire Weather possible across southern California on Thursday... A relatively small area of heavy snow is currently ongoing across portions of western Oklahoma and southwest Kansas. Snow is forecast to continue across the region through early Thursday. Localized amounts upwards of 12 inches will be possible and could severely impact travel. Lower snowfall amounts around 1 to 2 inches will be possible further southwest near Amarillo, Texas. Winter Storm Warnings and Winter Weather Advisories are currently in effect for the impacted areas. This same system is expected to bring showers and thunderstorms to the Lower Mississippi Valley and Gulf Coast states Thursday, while slowly swinging toward the east. Isolated instances of flash flooding are possible along the western and central Gulf Coast, where 1 to 2 inches of rain could fall. By Friday, showers will push into the southern Appalachians and Mid-Atlantic. At the same time, light snow will begin to mix in with rain showers across the Lower Great Lakes as a cold front drops south from Canada. Meanwhile, weather throughout the western United States will remain fairly quiet with one exception. Thanks to a large area of high pressure located over the Rockies and Great Basin, gusty offshore winds are expected to continue across southern California through Friday. These gusty winds combined with dry air will allow for any wildfires to spread uncontrollably. The Storm Prediction Center has placed an Extremely Critical Fire Weather area across the San Diego County Mountains on Thursday. Red Flag Warnings and High Winds Warnings have also been issued for much of southern California. Snell Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php