Long Island weather: Overnight snow ends; clearing skies expected into Tuesday

Most of Long Island received a light coating of snow overnight that has given way to overcast skies with clearing expected in the afternoon.

Merrick received the top snowfall for Nassau with 2.6, inches followed by East Meadow at 2.3 inches and Farmingdale at 2.2 inches.

In Suffolk, North Babylon's 2.8 inches was the county's highest total, with Sayville at 1.9 inches, and Islip Airport recording 1.8 inches.

Monday morning, major Long Island roads like Hempstead Turnpike and Route 109 in eastern Nassau had been plowed; side roads off those thoroughfares were improving. Travel conditions continued to improve through the morning.

The Long Island Expressway and the Northern and Southern State parkways showed no major issues during the Presidents Day commute, according to the website 511NY. 

The Long Island Rail Road was operating on a weekend schedule Monday; there is a partial suspension on the Hempstead Branch for signal upgrades.

Also, westbound trains on the Ronkonkoma and Port Jefferson branches were reporting scattered delays averaging 10 to 15 minutes due to signal trouble west of Woodside and trackwork. Those two branches were also skipping stops at Elmont-UBS Arena, Queens Village, and Hollis due to signal work.

Just before 10 a.m., Republic Airport in East Farmingdale was reporting 30 degrees with overcast skies. North winds were recorded at 9 mph.

Long Island MacArthur Airport was reporting 30 degrees and overcast skies, with northeast winds of 12 mph. It was overcast at Kennedy Airport in Jamaica, at 31 degrees and northeast winds of 14 mph.

Clearing skies are expected into Monday afternoon, with temperatures climbing through the 30s and reaching a high near 39.

Tuesday will be a little warmer, about 41 degrees, under partly sunny skies, according to the weather service.

Long Island is in for a pattern of thawing and freezing beginning Sunday and lasting much of this week. Temperatures will climb into the high 30s and low 40s during the day and dip just below freezing at night. forecasters said. 

The thermometer hit 38 degrees under overcast skies Sunday afternoon in Islip.

Accumulations of just about an inch were expected in most places, but there might be "just a light dusting out on the Forks," said Bill Goodman, a meteorologist with the weather service in Upton.

New York City's Office of Emergency Management issued a weather alert for Sunday night through Monday morning, urging that care be taken on untreated roads and sidewalks. 

After that, Goodman said, "We’re going to have a warm front that’s going to park to our south, with low-pressure systems passing to the west." That will bring rain to the region Wednesday afternoon and night, and again early Friday.

That rain, and temperatures expected to reach the low 40s in the daytime Wednesday through Friday, should continue to melt the remaining snow.