Pamlico River & Pungo River Marine Forecast
| This Afternoon...Nw Winds 5 To 10 Kt. Waves Light Chop. |
| Tonight...N Winds 5 To 10 Kt. Waves Light Chop. |
| Fri...Ne Winds 5 To 10 Kt. Waves Light Chop. |
| Fri Night...Ne Winds 10 To 15 Kt, Increasing To 15 To 20 Kt With Gusts Up To 25 Kt After Midnight. Waves A Moderate Chop, Increasing To Choppy After Midnight. A Slight Chance Of Snow In The Evening, Then A Chance Of Snow After Midnight With Vsby 1 To 3 Nm. |
| Sat...N Winds 15 To 20 Kt, Increasing To 20 To 25 Kt In The Afternoon. Gusts Up To 30 Kt. Waves Choppy, Increasing To Rough In The Afternoon. Snow. Vsby 1 To 3 Nm. |
| Sat Night...N Winds 25 To 30 Kt With Gusts Up To 40 Kt. Waves Very Rough. Snow. Vsby 1 Nm Or Less. |
| Sun...Nw Winds 25 To 30 Kt, Diminishing To 20 To 25 Kt In The Afternoon. Waves Very Rough, Diminishing To Rough In The Afternoon. Snow Likely In The Morning With Vsby 1 To 3 Nm. |
| Sun Night...Nw Winds 15 To 20 Kt, Diminishing To 10 To 15 Kt After Midnight. Waves Choppy, Diminishing To A Moderate Chop After Midnight. |
| Mon...Nw Winds 10 To 15 Kt. Waves A Moderate Chop. |
| Mon Night...W Winds 5 To 10 Kt. Waves Light Chop. |
| Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Newport/Morehead City NC 412pm EST Thu Jan 29 2026 .WHAT HAS CHANGED... High confidence continues for a Major Winter Storm to develop this weekend across the Carolinas. Winter Storm Watches continue for all of Eastern North Carolina. Have added Blizzard Condition mentions for eastern coastal counties. Storm Watches continue for all marine zones save for the Pamlico and Pungo Rivers (Gale Watch) starting Saturday evening. A High Wind Watch continues for all OBX zones, and has been expanding to Downeast Carteret, Mainland Dare, and Tyrrell counties starting Saturday evening. Coastal Flood Watches has been issued for Outer Banks and Downeast Carteret. .KEY MESSAGES... 1) Major Winter Storm to develop across the Carolinas this weekend, as an area of low pressure deepens rapidly off the NC coast. a) Heavy Snow: Several inches of snow are expected across all of Eastern NC, with some locations likely seeing upwards of a foot of snow. Snow rates of up to 1-2" per hour are possible. Strong winds will coincide with the heaviest snow rates, which will produce near whiteout conditions at times, and even blizzard conditions along the eastern NC coast (including OBX) b) Wind: A rapidly deepening bomb cyclone will produce very strong winds across Eastern NC, especially the coast. Peak wind gusts will likely reach 35-50 mph inland, and 55-70 mph along the coast and OBX early Sunday morning. These winds could blow down trees and power lines especially when snow load becomes an issue. c) Extreme Cold: More extreme cold is expected during and after the winter storm, with wind chills likely falling below 0 Sunday and Monday mornings. d) Coastal Flooding: Potential for moderate to locally significant coastal flooding for areas along the Outer Banks and adjacent to the southern Pamlico Sound. Marine Extremely dangerous marine conditions expected this weekend as a low pressure system deepens rapidly off the NC coast. Storm conditions are expected with the potential for Hurricane Force wind gusts. KEY MESSAGE 1a-1b... A major winter storm will unfold this weekend across the Carolinas as an area of low pressure deepens rapidly off the NC coast. Confidence remains high and continues to increase that the area will see several inches of snow, with some spots seeing upwards of a foot of snow. In addition to the potential major impacts of the heavy snow, very strong winds will develop as the low pressure deepens rapidly off the NC coast. These strong winds will further reduce visibilities, leading to blowing and drifting snow, and could lead to blizzard conditions developing across the Eastern NC coast (including OBX). Potential Life Threatening Situations: The combination of these hazards will make travel impossible and could lead to life threatening situations if motorists become stranded due to the extreme cold temperatures that will move in Sunday morning. Additionally, widespread power outages are possible due to strong winds/heavy snow knocking down power lines and/or trees. Power restoration may be slow due to treacherous road conditions, and residents should prepare for the potential for longer term power outages with extremely cold temperatures outside. Historically, this storm's setup is most like the December 24, 1989 and early March 1980 storms. Both of these historic events produced 12+" of snow for Eastern North Carolina with accumulations from the March 1980 storm nearing 24" in some areas. While there's potential for this weekend's snow accumulations to be comparable to these past events, keep in mind that we're still more than 36 hours out from when the heaviest snow is expected to fall, which means there's still room for adjustments (up or down) in the accumulation forecast. However, with the probabilities of higher snow amounts consistently going up, the higher end amounts should not be taken lightly when thinking about storm preparation. No matter how much snow falls, it will not melt quickly due to the extremely cold air that will build in behind this system. Temperatures aren't expected to approach freezing until Monday, but some areas may not get above freezing until Tuesday. KEY MESSAGE 1c... Extremely cold air will stick around behind the winter storm with the potential to set additional new record low temperatures Monday and Tuesday mornings. Lows will be in the low tens to low 20s Sunday night/Monday morning with dangerously cold wind chills in the sub- zero to single digit range. High temperatures will approach freezing on Monday, but it's possible some inland areas to remain below freezing from tomorrow night until Tuesday. KEY MESSAGE 1d... The combination of very strong winds, wave action and high astronomical tides will lead to moderate to locally significant coastal flooding impacts, both soundside and oceanside. Impacts will likely begin on the oceanside and transition to soundside as winds back from NE to NW Sat afternoon into Sun. This will likely lead to travel impacts for vulnerable portions of NC-12, especially for Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands. A Coastal Flood Watch has been issued for the Outer Banks and Downeast Carteret county, with potential for 2-4 ft of inundation (above ground level). At this time, greatest oceanside impacts expected from Duck to Ocracoke...and soundside impacts from Rodanthe to Downeast Carteret. Minor to locally moderate water rises possible for areas adjacent to the southern Albemarle Sound and particularly up the Neuse River. Additional CF related products will be needed as well as High Surf Advisories with future updates. Marine A brief window of good boating conditions is expected from this evening through early tomorrow night with winds N to NE at 10-20 kts, and seas 2-4 ft. Outlook: A rapidly deepening low pressure system and potentially bomb cyclone will produce extremely dangerous marine conditions this weekend. Storm force winds of 40-50 kts are expected with the potential for Hurricane Force wind gusts (64+ kts) across portions of the coastal waters. Seas could reach 15-20 ft. Storm Watches continue for all marine zones save for the Pamlico and Pungo Rivers (Gale Watch) starting Saturday evening. Conditions will slowly improve Sunday night with winds forecast to drop below SCA (Small Craft Advisory) criteria by Monday afternoon. 6+ ft seas may linger well into Tuesday. NOAA Newport/Morehead City NC Office - Watches - Warnings - Advisories NC...Winter Storm Watch from Friday evening through Sunday afternoon for NCZ029-044-045-079>081-090>092-094-193>195- 198-199. Extreme Cold Watch from late Saturday night through Sunday morning for NCZ029-044>047-079>081-090>092-094-193>196- 198-199-203. Winter Storm Watch from Friday evening through Sunday evening for NCZ046-047-196-203. High Wind Watch from Saturday evening through Sunday afternoon for NCZ046-047-196-203>205. Coastal Flood Watch from Saturday afternoon through Sunday evening for NCZ196. Coastal Flood Watch from Saturday afternoon through Sunday evening for NCZ203>205. Winter Storm Watch from Saturday afternoon through Sunday evening for NCZ204-205. Marine Storm Watch from late Saturday night through Sunday morning for AMZ131. Storm Watch from Saturday evening through Sunday afternoon for AMZ135(Pamlico Sound)-230-231. Gale Watch from Saturday afternoon through Sunday afternoon for AMZ136. Storm Watch from late Saturday night through Sunday morning for AMZ137. Storm Watch from Saturday evening through Sunday afternoon for AMZ150. Storm Watch from Saturday afternoon through Sunday afternoon for AMZ152(Oregon Inlet to Cape Hatteras NC)-154. Storm Watch from Saturday afternoon through Sunday afternoon for AMZ156-158. |
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