Local groups, organizations, businesses and anyone else with plans that need to be canceled or postponed due to the impending snow storm is invited to contact The Newtown Bee to get the word out.shannon@thebee.comSend e-mail to Associate Editor Shannon Hicks, at Facebook and Twitter pages.posted early Wednesday morning in a Short Range Forecast Discussion.

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The National Weather Service (NWS) is predicting a "powerful Nor'easter" for Wednesday evening into Thursday, January 3-4.

"The storm is expected to bring snow, ice, rain, very strong winds, and rough surf to coastal locations of the Southeast US, Middle Atlantic, Northeast, and into New England Wednesday into Thursday. The potential exists for dangerous travel, scattered power outages, tidal flooding, and very cold wind chills," the weather service had posted on its website the morning of January 3.

A rapidly deepening area of low pressure just off the East Coast of Florida will move northeastward to the Canadian Maritimes by Friday, according to NWS.

The storm is expected to produce areas of snow and rain/freezing rain along the southeast coast through late Wednesday evening, according to NWS.

"As the storm continues to move northeastward, snow and rain will develop over parts of the Southern Mid-Atlantic Coast that will change over to all snow by Thursday morning," the weather service had

"By early Thursday morning," the discussion continued, "snow will begin to develop over parts of New England and expand into northern New England by Thursday afternoon continuing into Friday morning. The snow may be heavy at times over New England. The snow will end over the Mid-Atlantic by Thursday evening."

A NWS Winter Storm Watch will cover Fairfield County late Wednesday night through Thursday evening, the weather service announced very early Wednesday morning.  At 3:42 am January 3, the weather service was calling for "heavy snow and blowing snow possible. Plan on difficult travel conditions, including during the morning commute on Thursday. Total snow accumulations of 3 to 6 inches are likely, with higher amounts in excess of 6 inches possible" in southwestern Connecticut, New York City, and Nassau County, from late Wednesday through Thursday evening.

In addition, "winds gusting as high as 35 to 45 mph will cause areas of blowing and drifting snow. A few tree limbs and power lines may be downed, causing scattered power outages," the weather service also cautioned.