Early Snowfall Cuts Autumn Short for Parts of US

Even though it's only October, it's starting to feel a lot like winter in parts of the Midwest and the East.

Several cities across the country rounded out the weekend with their first snowfall of the season.

For much of the rest of the nation, cold temperatures will be sticking around through the start of the week.

Cold temperatures have already brought snow to Michigan, New York, and even parts of Pennsylvania.

"My two daughters woke up at 6:30 this morning and they were so excited they thought that it was Christmas and a little disappointed that they might have missed Halloween," Jeremy Belfield from Mexico, New York, said.

In Syracuse, New York, nearly nine inches of snow has fallen so far, burying backyards and making for dangerous road conditions.

The National Weather Service says the cold temperatures will stick around through Monday. But by the middle of the week, milder fall temperatures will be back, putting winter on hold for at least a few more weeks.

"It would be nice to have fall back and you know we certainly love the first snowfall, just not this early," Belfield said.

Forecasters say it's not unusual for freezing temperatures to show up so early in the season.

Meanwhile, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released its winter outlook, predicting one of the strongest ever El Niño weather patterns in the Pacific, which will likely influence this winter's weather.

NOAA predicts above average temperatures in the northern half of the United States but below-average temperatures in the southern Plains and Southeast.