Watertown could get 70 inches of snow as lake effect forecast for North Country worsens

Syracuse, N.Y. — A severe lake effect snow system is headed for the Watertown area and could bring upwards of 6 feet of snow through Monday, according to the latest weather service forecasts.
And the snow has already started falling. Watertown could get 2 feet of snow before the sun comes up Saturday.
Already travel is “extremely poor” in these hard-hit areas, according to the National Weather Service.
“It might not be much where you are or where you’re going, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be bad along the way,” the weather service post on social media this afternoon, one day after Thanksgiving. “Avoid travel into the lake effect bands.”
As of 4 p.m. Friday, here’s what the weather service said could happen:
The heavy snow will make travel very difficult to impossible, the weather service said.
The bands could be narrow but intense, according to forecasts.
For example, Pulaski is about 30 minutes south of Watertown but expected to get about 10 inches of snow, according to the weather service.
Still, Gov. Kathy Hochul has declared states of emergencies in 11 Western and Northern New York Counties: Oswego, Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Allegany, Erie, Cattaraugaus, Chautauqua, Genessee, Herkimer, and Wyoming.
The weather service is urging people not to travel in or through areas where the snow bands will be heaviest.