5 Sneaky Snow And Ice Hazards To Watch Out For In Winter

M​ajor winter storms grab plenty of attention and therefore heighten awareness, but there are several sneaky hazards that can be just as dangerous and often slide under the radar during this snowy and icy time of year.

1. S​now squalls turn driving conditions from good to dangerous in an instant. These heavy bursts of snow have historically contributed to major highway pileups due to their brief but intense snowfall rates, dropping visibility suddenly. The aftermath of a snow squall-induced pileup can be seen in image below from Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, on Jan. 30, 2019.

They often occur where there is no major large-scale winter storm ongoing, taking unsuspecting drivers by surprise. Pressing play below gives an idea of what it's like to drive into these blinding walls of snow.

The National Weather Service issues snow squall warnings for this danger. They are of short duration and specify a localized area similar to what you would see with a tornado warning. See this link for what to do if a snow squall warning is issued for travelers in your area.

2. Even light snow can be dangerous. It doesn't take a major winter storm to cause major travel problems. As an example, in back-to-back winters from 2015 to 2017, about 54% of fatal snow-related traffic accidents occurred where snowfall was too light or too short in duration to warrant a National Weather Service winter storm warning or winter weather advisory.

S​o next time your forecast calls for just light amounts of snow or ice, don't take the danger lightly, especially on untreated roads.

3​. Drizzle might not seem like a big deal, but in subfreezing temperatures, it poses a serious threat. Even a light glazing of ice from this so-called freezing drizzle on bridges and roads can cause treacherous driving conditions.

One such example happened in early-January 2022, when widespread freezing drizzle in Chicagoland led to numerous auto accidents, including on interstates, the National Weather Service reported.

4. Fog is a danger because of reduced visibility, but it can also turn road conditions icy. When surface temperatures are below freezing, water droplets in a fog are supercooled, waiting to freeze on contact with any subfreezing surface.

These freezing fog events can be dangerous because of the light accumulation of black ice they cause on roads, particularly bridges and overpasses.

So next time it's foggy outside, take note of the temperature and if it's below freezing see if a freezing fog advisory has been issued by the National Weather Service for your area.

5​. A flash freeze can happen after a storm exits. In some cases, a storm system might only deliver precipitation that dampens roads in a particular location. However, when a sharp temperature drop follows that wet road can freeze into a layer of black ice in spots.

T​his most commonly occurs behind arctic cold fronts since they have some of the most rapid temperature drops.

Stronger winds can sometimes mitigate the threat of black ice by drying up the road surface before ice has a chance to form.

Chris Dolce has been a senior meteorologist with weather.com for over 10 years after beginning his career with The Weather Channel in the early 2000s.