Winter chill in mid-March hangs on but milder air is on the way
A quick burst of snow created icy roads for the Tuesday morning commute in Lexington but better days are on the horizon
It turned out to be an interesting and unfortunately dangerous commute Tuesday morning, especially in the Lexington metro area thanks to a quick coating of snow and falling temperatures just before sunrise. With temperatures falling below freezing, the bridges and overpasses became skating rinks and created numerous accidents and delays as a result. Even with a mix of clouds and sunshine through the afternoon didn’t keep a few flurries from falling as afternoon highs struggled through the 30s once again.
Luckily we’ll see much better weather in short order as high pressure builds into the Ohio Valley for the mid-week. A hard freeze is possible early Wednesday with temperatures dipping into the low 20s, which could be problematic for some of the plants that have bloomed early after all the mild weather in February. With full sunshine and a light south wind, afternoon highs should recover all the way to either side of 50 degrees in most locations Wednesday.
Thursday looks like the pick day of the week as the area of high pressure drifts eastward allowing a strong southwest flow to push even milder air into the commonwealth. Winds should gust 30 to 35 miles per hour at times and that combined with some sunshine means afternoon highs should run into the low 60s, which is a few degrees above average for this time of the year. Rain chances will ramp up as the cold front moves in late Thursday and and into early Friday. “Highs” on St. Patrick’s Day will be in the morning before temperatures drop back through the day as the showers eventually taper off. A solid .50″ to 1″ rainfall totals will be possible as the rain shouldn’t be overly heavy.
The roller coaster ride of temperatures with swings from winter to spring and back to winter will roll along into the upcoming weekend with more unseasonably cold air arriving for Saturday and Sunday behind the departing cold front. Once again, a hard freeze looks to be on the table with early morning lows dipping into the low 20s.
ABC 36 HOUR FORECAST
TUESDAY NIGHT: Clear and cold, hard freeze. Lows in the low-20s.
WEDNESDAY: Mostly sunny, a bit milder. Highs around 50 degrees.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT: A few clouds and quiet. Lows in the low-30s.
