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Eastern Iowa is poised to see its first snowfall of the season Wednesday afternoon, into the evening.

Rich Kinney, warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service’s Quad Cities bureau said the weather service is predicting “light dustings” of snow, with about half an inch predicted for the Cedar Rapids area.

He added that any snow likely will remain only on elevated surfaces, since the temperature of the ground and pavement will melt much of the falling snow. The high temperature Wednesday in Cedar Rapids is forecast to be around 42 degrees.

Despite the light snowfall, Kinney said there is concern for “snow squalls” later in the day, as the area will see gusts of wind between 25 and 30 mph.

These snow squalls “can reduce visibility to near zero very quickly,” Kinney said.

Snow squalls are a winter weather hazard that can move in and out quickly, sometimes lasting less than an hour, creating sudden whiteout conditions.

They occur when there is heavy snowfall and strong, gusty winds that leads to a quick reduction in visibility . The squalls can develop even when there isn’t a large-scale winter storm in progress.

How to stay safe during snow squalls

Although brief, snow squalls can create dangerous conditions for drivers.

The National Weather Service recommends avoiding driving and travel if a snow squall is expected in your area.

If someone is already driving when a squall occurs, the weather service recommends motorists reduce their speed, turn on headlights and hazard lights, allow plenty of distance between cars and not slam on the brakes, in order to reduce the risk of chain-reaction multicar crashes.

November snowfall historically

Kinney said Wednesday’s snow projection is close to the date of Cedar Rapids’ average first snowfall. The first snowfall in the city typically is Nov. 23.

According to the Quad Cities/Illinois Weather Forecast Office Almanac , the earliest Cedar Rapids saw snow was Sept. 26, 1942, with half an inch. The latest in the season Cedar Rapids had its first snowfall of the season was Jan. 6, 1913, with 0.3 inches of snowfall.