Heavy rain and snow to strike Texas Christmas weekend

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Major storms are expected to batter Texas this Christmas weekend, with heavy rain in the southeast and snow in the northwest.

The Houston area, along with most the Eastern half of the state, could weather damaging wings, isolated tornadoes and up to two inches of accumulated rainfall beginning late Saturday night.

Local thunderstorms are nearly certain by midday Sunday, with a muggy daytime high of 74 degrees.

Elsewhere in Texas the story is different. In the Panhandle and West Texas, forecasters foresee blizzard conditions with strong winds and significant snowfall accumulations. Texas Storm Chasers predicted possible "life-threatening travel conditions" in regions around Lubbock and Amarillo.

Around Houston, stormy skies should clear by Monday, followed by a cold front that will dip daytime highs into the more seasonally-acceptable 50s.