Many Marylanders are waking up to a snowy Monday morning with school closures, traffic delays and the chance for additional wintry accumulation throughout the day.

The National Weather Service issued a winter weather storm warning Sunday after meteorologists said a heavy band of Monday’s storm is expected to pass just south of Baltimore — increasing expected snowfall in most of the state.

Several school systems across Maryland — including Baltimore City Public Schools, Baltimore County Public Schools, Anne Arundel County Public Schools, Harford County Public Schools, Howard County Public Schools and Cecil County Public Schools — announced school closures Sunday, ahead of the storm.

Over the weekend Gov. Wes Moore also declared a state of preparedness, which enhances the state’s ability to respond to winter weather hazards and provides an “easy path” for information sharing and coordination, according to a news release from the governor Saturday.

The Maryland State Highway Association began pre-treating roadways ahead of the storm and urged drivers to avoid unnecessary travel once snowfall begins.

Baltimore City Mayor Brandon Scott said the city is taking an “all hands on deck” effort to prepare for the storm with the city’s transportation department initiating road treatment as early as Thursday last week.

The city’s health department issued a Code Blue Extreme Cold Alert through Tuesday, meaning there is an increased risk exists for cold-related injuries such as frostbite and hypothermia. Those seeking shelter can contact the city’s shelter hotline at 443-984-9540.

Data from Sunday afternoon showed snowfall was expected to begin after midnight and last throughout Monday, according to FOX45 Chief Meteorologist Gerard Jebaily. Some southern areas of the state like Anne Arundel County are expected to receive as much as 11 inches, Jebaily said.

The NWS posted a map on social media Sunday showing that parts of central Maryland have a 1 in 10 chance of receiving up to 14 inches of snow.

“The volatility of the forecast has been a big challenge here because we knew there is going to be a heavy snowband that sets up,” Jebaily said. “Finding that out and knowing exactly where has been a challenge because a minuscule change makes a big difference in snow totals.”

Factors like atmospheric pressure, upper-level winds, temperature and even geographical components like mountains can impact winter storm trajectories.

If the storm tracked north, snowfall across the state would be expected to increase.

If the system tracked south and pulled warmer air, possible snowfall would be reduced.

Jebaily said as of Sunday, the storm appears to have avoided tracking north or south and has remained in central Maryland between Washington, D.C., and Baltimore.

The storm’s band has “sharp” edges, Jebaily said, which has the potential to yield 9 to 11 inches of snow in some pockets of the state.

“It is quite a range in places like Baltimore County where the southern half could see 9 to 10 inches and the northern part could see four,” Jebaily said.

He explained that winter weather is a “10-1 ratio” which means that per every 0.1 inch of liquid precipitation, that is 1 inch of snow.

“Few people scrutinize half-inch versus 1 inch of rain but that’s the difference between 5 inches of snow and 10 inches,” Jebaily said. “You could see 5 inches while just 5 miles away they could receive 10 inches.”

Have a news tip? Contact Matt Hubbard at mhubbard@baltsun.com, 443-651-0101 or @mthubb on X.