ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Friday, March 8, 1996                  TAG: 9603080101
SECTION: VIRGINIA                 PAGE: C4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: BETTY HAYDEN STAFF WRITER

WINTER JUST WON'T LET GO OF REGION

A burst of arctic air brought another dose of winter weather to the Roanoke Valley Thursday night.

Forecasters expected the heavy snowfall to taper off overnight, followed by snow showers today. When it's all over, only about 1/2 to 1 inch should be on the ground, but the cold temperatures will stick around.

Rich Kane, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Blacksburg office, said temperatures should climb to the 40s or low 50s by Tuesday - a far cry from the 70-degree weather residents enjoyed earlier this week.

The weekend weather "will be a real slap in the face," he said. "Winter refuses to give up."

The cold snap makes it feel more like January or February, Kane said, but March traditionally has the potential for some "pretty good storms." He pointed to the Blizzard of '93, when 16 inches of snow fell on Roanoke and 32 on Blacksburg in the middle of March.

"I wouldn't count winter out yet," he said.

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