2nd snowstorm of 2012 arrives

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - After a brief break, winter has returned to West Michigan in 2012.

A Winter Storm Warning is in effect through Friday for Allegan, Berrien, Branch, Cass, Kalamazoo, Ottawa, Muskegon, Oceana and St. Joseph counties.

A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect through Friday for Barry, Calhoun, Ionia, Kent, Mecosta, Montcalm and Newaygo counties.

Temperatures will be in the mid-20s Friday morning and will hold through the day. A wind will gust to 30 mph, so wind chills will be in the low teens and single digits.

Snow will fall through mid-morning inland before winding down. An additional 1 to 2 inches of snow may fall in the inland areas Friday, with as much as 2 to 4 inches of additional snow in the "snowbelt" areas, especially into the evening in a band from the shoreline of Ottawa County through central Allegan, Van Buren, Berrien and Cass counties.

Total snow accumulation will likely be between 4 and 7 inches with isolated higher amounts in the lake-enhanced snowbands. Amounts will decrease farther inland with the Lansing area expecting 2 to 4 inches.

As of 9:30 a.m. Friday, here are some of the accumulations around West Michigan --

ALLEGAN COUNTY

• Allegan -- 3.5 inches    

BERRIEN     COUNTY

• Niles - 9.5 inches

CASS COUNTY

• Granger -- 6 inches

KALAMAZOO COUNTY

• Kalamazoo -- 5 inches
• Oshtemo Township -- 6.5 inches

KENT COUNTY

• Grand Rapids -- 3.1 inches

MECOSTA COUNTY

• Big Rapids -- 4.6 inches

MUSKEGON COUNTY

• Muskegon -- 5.1 inches

NEWAYGO COUNTY

• White Cloud -- 5 inches

OCEANA COUNTY

• Hart -- 7.4 inches
• Mears -- 6.5 inches

OTTAWA COUNTY

• Allendale -- 7 inches
• Grand Haven -- 5 inches
• Holland -- 4 inches

VAN BUREN COUNTY

• Bloomingdale -- 5 inches
• Buchanan -- 7 inches
• Paw Paw -- 6 inches

Storm Team 8 is tracking the storm so check frequently for developing information, and stay tuned to 24 Hour News 8 for breaking details.

Send your photos of the storm to ReportIt and check out other photos in the ReportIt photo gallery.

The Kent County Road Commission has plenty of road salt in its supply due the unseasonably mild winter season so far.

"Last year at this time of year we used 9,500 tons of salt. So far this year we have only used 3,800. We are down considerably from what we would normally be," said Jerry Byrne, Director of Maintenance and Local Construction for the Kent County Road Commission, on Thursday.

Byrne told 24 Hour News 8 that his crews are out in full force Friday morning during the busiest time.

"Rush hour is the hardest for us to handle. Tomorrow (Friday) we will have 90 crews on by 6 a.m. to handle that rush hour."

He warns drivers to be prepared and to give his trucks some room on the roads.

"Get up and leave early so you are not in a hurry," Byrne says.

"Stay away from the plows. These individuals have a hard time seeing. We are talking about heavy snowfalls so visibility is going to be tight. So if you can stay away from the plows, stay away from the back of them. Stay away from the side of them. That is going to let us do our job better."