A significant winter storm is shaping up for this weekend, and meteorologists say heavy snow, thick ice and brutal cold could affect nearly 30 states.

The storm is still three days out, so the effects on the Hudson Valley remain unknown, but DPW crews throughout the area are already preparing. In Yonkers, Department of Public Works Commissioner Thomas Meier said the next two days will involve checking all trucks and equipment, receiving salt shipments and pretreating roads ahead of the storm.

Meier said the storm could be challenging because of the amount of snow predicted and the cold temperatures. He is asking people to stay off the roads if they can and to park cars in their driveways.

Meier says plows will eventually get to every street but asks residents to be patient, adding, “The priority is always to get the main roads opened up first. That enables our emergency services to get back and forth across the city a little more quickly.”

Depending on what the storm brings, Meier says they could end up declaring a state of emergency in Yonkers.