Turning Wetter Followed by a Cold Blast

It has been well documented that with our La Nina climate pattern holding firm, it has been warmer and drier than normal.
That is going to take a backseat in the days ahead, however, as a strong storm system moves into the Deep South. This storm will provide us with some soaking rain showers followed by the coldest air we have experienced so far this winter season.

Our next storm will move into the state on Sunday. Due to its delayed arrival, Saturday will be partly cloudy and dry.

By Sunday, a strong surface low will combine with an upper level low to give us widespread rain showers. Some of the rain on Sunday will be heavy at times. Not only will it be wet, but it will be a cold and raw day, as temperatures only make the middle 40's for highs.

With cold air wrapping around the low pressure area, it will be cold enough to support a wintry mix with snow possible in portions of Northeast Texas, Southwest Arkansas, and extreme northern portions of Louisiana. Even though it will be cold and wet, our temperature profile will be just a little to warm to see any white stuff fall from the sky in Deep East Texas.


After the rain moves out, a surge of Arctic air will be spilling into the Southern Plains, bringing with it some very cold temperatures.

The surge of cold air will come in late Monday and early Tuesday. A big trough, or dip in the Jetstream, will allow that cold blast to spill all the way down to the Gulf of Mexico.

As a result, temperatures most of next week will not make it out of the 40's and on Wednesday, we may be hard pressed to get out of the 30's. At night, low temperatures will bottom out in the lower to middle 20's.

With hard freezes next week and with it staying below freezing for several hours, now would be a good time to wrap your pipes and protect your home from the brutally cold weather.

Keep in mind that rain is moving in on Sunday, so I would wrap your pipes on Friday or Saturday, while the weather is still tolerable.

Keep it tuned to KTRE-TV. We will continue to give you updates on our forecast and the cold blast heading our way next week. You can also follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/KTREwx.