
Meteorologists are predicting up to six inches of snow in New York City and the surrounding areas this weekend as Winter Storm Benji grips the Northeast.

Up to six inches of precipitation is expected to fall Saturday in some parts of the Tri-State, especially up north into Connecticut.

One to three inches is expected in New York City where Christmas enthusiasts prepare for New York City's annual pub crawl SantaCon which sees thousands of people take to the streets dressed in Santa costumes.

As of Friday evening, snow has begun to fall across western and northern Virginia. More than four inches has hit near Danville.

Winter Storm Benji will travel to the Northeast Saturday morning hitting parts of Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Jersey, where the storm will sweep through I-95 corridor early afternoon.

Temperatures in New York City will drop to mid-30's Saturday and rise toward the end of the weekend.

Salt spreaders will be out early Saturday, while plow trucks will clear roadways after two inches of snow accumulate.

The snow storm will move out of the Northeast come Sunday morning.

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Winter Storm Benji will leave the south and travel to the mid-Atlantic and Northeast with moderate to heavy snowfall this weekend

The storm in the south extended from southern Louisiana into parts of Mississippi, Alabama and north Georgia

Winter Storm Benji first swept through the Gulf Coast Friday, with Alabama getting hit the hardest with 10 inches

Meteorologists are predicting moderate to heavy snowfall for New York City and surrounding areas

The storm marks the first of the season for the Northeast. It will move out of the region come Sunday

The storm will hit hardest through I-95 corridor by early afternoon in Northeast regions

Along the I-95 corridor from Virginia to Massachusetts, winter storm warnings have been issued in Boston, Virginia, Salisbury, Maryland and Dover Delaware.

Neither Philadelphia, D.C. or New York City have not been issued with warnings at this time.

AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said: 'While a three to six-inch snowfall is most likely in New England, that sort of snowfall may extend all the way down to parts of New Jersey, Delaware, southern Maryland and central and southeastern Virginia.

'Temperatures will be a little lower in New England, when compared to Virginia, but there may be just as much moisture available on a straight line from eastern Maine to southeastern Virginia.'

Benji first swept through the Gulf Coast Friday and hit Alabama and North Carolina.

Two to six inches are expected to accumulate in the Northeast early Saturday

Temperatures in New York City will drop to mid-30's Saturday and rise toward the end of the weekend

According to The Weather Channel the Highlands, North Carolina, received the most snow with 15 inches falling in the area.

A foot of snow was recorded in Fairview, North Carolina, near Ashville, and Henderson and Buncombe counties in western North Carolina has seen 7-12 inches of snowfall in the higher terrain.

The weather forecast likely won't stop dedicated SantaCon goers - who have a reputation for making the most of the holiday tradition each year.

The holiday event takes place in as many as 380 cities in America and 51 countries, according to SantaCon.info.

Although it is held in several other locations around the world, New York is known to be the most widely celebrated.

The snow storm is the first of the season. Last winter season, Category 3 Winter Storm Stella occurred in March

A worker driving a plow removes the snow from the sidewalk on March 14, 2017 in New York City

The weather forecast likely won't stop dedicated SantaCon goers - who have a reputation for making the most of the holiday tradition each year (crowds are shown at the 2016 celebration)

Last year, police swarmed the city as thousands of people dressed in red, white and green crowded together early Saturday and continued the bash into Sunday morning.

Police received numerous complaints about disorderly conduct during the pub crawl in recent years.

While no arrests were reported in 2016, '100 summonses were issued to people dressed like Santa Claus for offenses falling into the disorderly conduct category,' according to Patch.com.

These offenses include, but are not limited to: 'peeing in public, being overly drunk in public and drinking on the street.'

Police say SantaCon goers who are slapped with tickets can expect to appear in court and pay hefty fines.