From western Nassau County to Montauk Point, Long Island towns are preparing for what could be the largest winter storm to hit the region in four years.

Meteorologists are forecasting 6 to 12 inches of snow this weekend — with local accumulations of up to 15 inches. The snowfall is expected to start falling early Sunday morning and last until Monday, according to the National Weather Service.

On the East End, where open farm fields can expose roads to snowdrifts, highway superintendents are preparing by checking snow fences, which help trap windblown snow, and readying large snow-blowing trucks.

“I don’t really fear the total, I fear the wind,” Riverhead Highway Superintendent Mike Zaleski told NEWSDAY. Snowdrifts caused by strong winds can make roads near farms hazardous and impassable, he said.

According to the forecast, gusts on Sunday could reach up to 30 mph.

“We have a few roads that are very open with farm fields on either side,” Southold Highway Superintendent Dan Goodwin said. “A road like that, you go through and open it up, and by the time you get to the other end of it, it doesn’t look like you were ever there.”

Employees with the Town of Southold's Highway Department and Department of Public Works will work 24 plow routes to clear 400 miles of road, Goodwin said. A crew will also be stationed on Fishers Island, responsible for about 10 miles of road.

Ahead of the storm, crews are checking plow blades, equipment and about 7 miles of snow fencing throughout town.

Officials expect one of the storm’s biggest challenges to be its duration.

“It’s tough on the crew. It’s a mentally draining job to stay sharp, to stay safe,” said Goodwin. “I’m hopeful that everybody will be able to go home on Monday evening and start to get caught up on a little bit of sleep."

Officials are offering a few reminders about managing the storm, ranging from travel impact to keeping pets safe.

Officials have warned people to avoid travel. But for those who must, it's wise to check for cancellations and schedule changes.

Several airlines have offered to waive change fees ahead of the storm in order to reschedule flights in case of widespread cancellations. There were minimal delays and cancellations listed as of yesterday afternoon at Kennedy and LaGuardia airports through Saturday.

The MTA and Long Island Rail Road generally begin reducing service for between 8 to 12 inches of snow, according to the MTA.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has traditionally seen significant suspensions of service or shut down the full system during more than one foot of snow or blizzard conditions. Service may also be interrupted during subzero temperatures.

The National Weather Service advised those who must drive to consider taking a winter storm kit in case a vehicle gets stuck or stranded. Supplies may include tire chains, jumper cables, a flashlight, a shovel, blankets and extra clothing.

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East End Arts holds a reception tomorrow for its last show before a massive renovation of its East Main Street Campus in Riverhead.

This year’s member’s show, is titled “In Motion.”

The exhibit’s Opening Reception is Saturday, January 24…that’s tomorrow from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Movement is both the inspiration and the metaphor for this year’s show, symbolizing not only artistic energy and transformation but also the exciting transition of East End Arts Council itself. This exhibition marks the final show at 133 E. Main Street before the organization’s temporary relocation during the Riverhead Town Square revitalization project.

East End Arts “In Motion” opening reception is tomorrow at 4 p.m.

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Long Island schools are gearing up to tackle the threat of a major snow storm this Sunday into early Monday.

Lorena Mongelli reports in NEWSDAY that school district...

National Grid Ventures, co-owner of Long Island’s first two battery storage plants, has withdrawn plans for a half-dozen other plants across the region, even as it works with partner NextEra Energy Resources to overhaul a plant in Montauk that’s offline. National Grid Ventures, a division of London-based National Grid whose U.S. operation owns a fleet of Long Island power plants and the regional natural gas system, had been listed in a state grid-connection database as proposing battery plants in West Babylon, Southampton, Far Rockaway, Port Jefferson, Wading River and Glenwood Landing.

Together the projects represented hundreds of megawatts of potential energy storage, some using space at power stations National Grid owns from its acquisition of KeySpan in 2007. (The plants were previously owned by the former LILCO.)

Mark Harrington reports in NEWSDAY that New York Independent System Operator, which manages requests to connect to power grids across the state, previously had proposals for about 60 battery-storage facilities for Long Island in 2025. That list has since been whittled to 20. "National Grid is not planning to develop any additional battery sites on Long Island at this time," other than the two on the South Fork, National Grid Ventures spokesman Will Brunelle told NEWSDAY. "The other proposals were withdrawn in favor of opportunities that better aligned with our business priorities."

National Grid was listed as proposing battery plants in Wading River, Southampton and Glenwood Landing. The two existing facilities on the South Fork, in Montauk and in East Hampton, have been operating under contract to LIPA since 2018. LIPA’s 20-year contracts to use the facilities, which are rated at 5-megawatts each, amount to a combined $109 million.

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Suffolk County health department testing of Peconic River samples following last week’s sewage discharge at an East Main Street construction site have shown “bacteriological indicator levels …. well below NYS Standards for bathing beaches” a health department official wrote in an email to Riverhead Sewer District Superintendent Tim Allen yesterday. Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the Suffolk Health Department has lifted a Jan. 14 health advisory urging the public against recreating in the tidal waters of the Peconic. The agency said in a press release “recent analysis of surface water samples collected from the potentially affected area indicates this area is suitable for primary contact recreation.” “SCDHS took multiple rounds of samples for bacterial contamination at various locations in the tidal portion of Peconic River. Results were unremarkable and do not suggest any sewage-related contamination,” Suffolk County Associate Public Health Sanitarian Nancy Pierson said in her email to Allen. A break in a Riverhead Sewer District pipe at the 203-213 East Main Street construction site on Jan. 14 resulted in a discharge of approximately 10,000 gallons of untreated wastewater at the site, located a short distance from the river. Allen said last week the situation was quickly “mitigated” and there was no visible evidence of the discharged wastewater contaminating the river. The property under construction is being developed by Heatherwood with a 165-unit apartment building. Allen told the Riverhead Town Board last Thursday that the discharged wastewater “saturated into the ground” so “there was no cleanup.” The contractor has a dewatering box on site because the shallow depth to groundwater requires dewatering during excavation for sewer pipes and the building foundation.

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The Calverton Civic Association is urging members of the public to attend this evening’s Riverhead Town Zoning Board of Appeals meeting at 6 p.m. to raise concerns about a proposed construction and demolition debris processing plant at 1792 Middle Road, which is currently the site of a single family...

With the growing prevalence of cameras in public spaces and what some refer to as a "surveillance state," many citizens are concerned with the widespread use of license plate readers and related video technologies in police departments. James Kiernan is Chief of Police for the Town of Southampton police department. He joins the panel to discuss the practical and local applications of video surveillance and how he views law enforcement's moral precedent to use technology available to them for the sake of public safety. The topic was prompted by a recent article from the East End Beacon about the seemingly sudden rise in solar-powered traffic cameras across the East End.

Live on WLIW-FM Saturday at 10am, and on demand right here where you get podcasts.