The snow started falling just before noon in downtown Belleville, making the town start to look a little bit more like a winter wonderland.

Metro-east residents started their Thursday with temperatures in the 50s, but the mercury fell to a chilly 36 at 12:30 p.m., according to the National Weather Service.

After 3 p.m., wet roads will turn icy and snow is expected to fall through out the day. Total accumulation is not expected to be more than a half of an inch.

The temperature is expected to dip to 20 degrees Thursday evening.

The wind will be strong, with gusts expected between 31 and 36 mph during the day and topping out at 55 mph during the evening.

The high temperature Friday, the first official day of winter, is expected to be 36 degrees under sunny skies.