Click HERE for an update concerning the Extreme and prolonged cold airmass threat beginning tonight and persisting through Christmas Day.
Changes from the previous update:
- The only changes have been to extend the Wind Chill Advisory and Hard Freeze Warning out further in time.
Overview:
WHAT: Extreme Cold and Prolonged Freeze along with Dangerous Wind Chills
WHEN: The first impacts will begin this evening as the very intense cold front quickly moves through
WHERE: All of southeast LA, southwest MS, and coastal MS
CONFIDENCE: At this time confidence is very high that we will experience a very impactful if not dangerous Arctic airmass tonight and through the Christmas holiday.
Impacts:
Freeze/Hard Freeze:
- Temperatures will fall into the teens and mid-20s the next 3 to possibly 4 nights. and many locations will see below-freezing temperatures for a prolonged time. Numerous locations along and north of I-12 in Louisiana and across coastal MS could experience for 60+ hours of freezing in under 84 hours. Locations along and south of I-10 in southeast LA could see anywhere from 20 to almost 60 hours of freezing conditions.
- These conditions could result in significant damage to unprotected pipes as well as citrus and other sensitive agricultural crops.
Wind Chill:
- Wind chills below 13 degrees are expected with some locations across southwest MS and adjacent LA parishes approaching 0 tonight through tomorrow morning and again Friday night through Saturday morning.
- These dangerous wind chills can quickly lead to hypothermia and could be life-threatening for individuals and animals that are unable to find shelter and warm up.
A few other impacts to bring up
Winds:
Very strong winds will quickly set in behind the cold front and winds gusts of 35 to almost 50 mph out of the northwest are anticipated. The strongest winds will be along the coast and to the south of Lakes Pontchartrain, Maurepas, and Borgne. Wind gusts of this magnitude will blow around loose objects like…Christmas decorations but it could also bring down weak/dead trees and limbs which could fall on power lines leading to power outages when many people will remain inside trying to stay warm.
Tides:
Yes, this is somewhat of an odd impact but given the holiday weekend, many people may try to go fish and/or hunt, yes even with a very strong coming through. The problem is the magnitude of the wind will be strong enough to force a good bit of water out of the back bays and other coastal areas facing south. Looking at the forecast some of the tides are indicating a fall of 3 to 4.5 feet between 9pm tonight and 8am tomorrow. This would actually place some locations around 2 to possibly 3 feet below MHHW (Mean Higher High Water) which is what we use to indicate ground level for inundation. This could easily strand unsuspecting fishermen/hunters in locations that may be near impossible to reach with very hazardous conditions. Just a heads up on another possible impact.
