HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — We’ve got warmer and wetter weather in the forecast this week before an arctic cold front arrives late Friday, and we now have an ABC13 Weather Watch for Saturday and Sunday because of the possibility of freezing rain and sleet behind the front.
Overnight we expect clouds to start returning with seasonal low temperatures in the upper 30s and low 40s. Cloud cover will increase on Tuesday as a rainy low pressure system moves our way. Despite the clouds, our rain chances will only be around 10% and our temperatures will still warm well into the 60s.
On Wednesday we’ll have lows in the 50s and highs in the 60s with widespread clouds and showers. Your chance of getting rain is 60%.
What should I be preparing for with the arctic cold front this weekend?
First off, it’s going to bring our coldest stretch of weather so far this winter. We should have 2-3 mornings with freezing temperatures, and if we get frozen precipitation, we may spend 24-48 hours below freezing. A hard freeze looks unlikely at this time, but there is a chance we will have frozen precipitation starting on Saturday and ending on Sunday. If we get frozen precipitation, there could be major disruptions to travel along with widespread power outages.
Will it snow?!
Probably not. The arctic air is expected to be shallow, meaning the layer of freezing air will not be thick enough to support snow. Instead, if we get anything frozen at all, it would likely be in the form of freezing rain or sleet (ice pellets).
Is this is a pipe-bursting type of cold?
At this time we are leaning more towards a long duration light freeze, but a hard freeze that can burst interior pipes is possible if we end up getting a lot of frozen precipitation.
When will we have more confidence on what will happen with the potential winter storm this weekend?
By Wednesday we should have a clearer picture of how this all unfolds, and then we’ll iron out the finer details Thursday and Friday.
13 ALERT RADAR MAPS:
Southeast Texas
Houston
Harris County
Galveston County
Montgomery/Walker/San Jacinto/Polk/Grimes Counties
Fort Bend/Wharton/Colorado Counties
Brazoria/Matagorda Counties
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This story comes from our news partner ABC13 Houston.
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