A Very Active Pattern Change Coming
Hurricane Nicole made landfall this morning at 2:00 a.m. south of Vero Beach, Florida with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (cat 1). This is the first hurricane to come ashore on Florida’s Atlantic coast since Katrina in 2005. That system will bring us much-needed rainfall by late tonight.
Closer to home….
Rain will begin developing tonight across the region. Scattered rain showers could develop between 6:00 pm and midnight, with the bulk of the rain moving in after midnight. Rain could become heavy at times Friday morning and you may even hear some rumbles of thunder. Severe t-storms are not expected. Rain should begin tapering off by sunset Friday. Total rainfall amounts across the plateau are expected to be in the 1-2 inch range.
Colder air will spill in behind this system Friday evening. Temps will begin falling by sunset Friday and bottom out in the low to mid 30s by Saturday morning. There is a chance for rain showers to turn to snow showers Friday night and Saturday morning. This is a new development and one that I am watching closely. At this time, accumulation is not expected.
Highs this weekend will struggle to reach 40 degrees, which is quite the change from highs around 70 today! Overnight lows will fall into the lower 20s, with some colder spots possibly dipping into the upper teens. Make sure your pipes are protected, that your neighbors are ready to use heat (safely), and that your outdoor fur babies are ready for the cold.
Pipes, people, pets.
The radar model below does a good handling the moisture from “Nicole” interacting with our approaching cold front. This model begins at 6:00 pm this evening and ends at 3:00 a.m. Friday, in one-hour increments.
Looking ahead…
As much, much colder air becomes entrenched in our region, yet another system will develop near the Gulf and throw moisture up and over the colder air Monday night (after midnight) and Tuesday morning. If timing is right, as guidance has suggested for several days now, we could have snow showers/light snow late Monday night and Tuesday morning. It is too early to know how much, if any, accumlation there will be, so stay tuned. Just keep this in mind if you have travel plans Monday night and/or Tuesday morning. Temps will warm above freezing by noon Tuesday (if not earlier), so things should be fine by then. This is looking like a “light” event.
