By most measures, Thursday looks to be a miserable day – cold, rainy and breezy. The precipitation is just what the tri-state has needed for weeks.

New York City has received just over an inch of rain, not nearly enough to end the drought but definitely helpful, a winter storm hits our region, dropping potentially as much as a foot of snow in areas of upstate New York and parts of the southern tier.

Heavy rain and snow is expected across the tri-state area on Thursday, a day after City officials declared the fist drought warning in over two decades.

Rain (at long last!) arrives overnight tonight and could bring a quick inch or two to much of the tri-state by sunrise Thursday. Light showers will linger through the rest of the week, but the big news will be the heavy rain Thursday morning.