A potentially catastrophic winter storm will bring up to two feet of snow, significant ice, and extreme, life-threatening cold that will disrupt travel for millions of people this weekend.
That’s the forecast for just about everybody else in the country. For the Sunshine State, that same winter storm will usher in above-average warmth and sunny, spring-like skies this weekend.
Temperatures in South Florida will rise into the low 80s through Monday. Central Florida will be even warmer, with potentially record-breaking temperatures on Sunday.
Enjoy it while you can, because by the middle of next week, South Florida will return to its seasonal daytime temperatures in the mid-60s and nighttime lows in the upper 40s to low 50s.
Here’s the five-day forecast for Broward and Palm Beach counties, summarized by AI based on information from the National Weather Service.
On Saturday, expect a 20 percent chance of showers across the region. Highs will be around 80 degrees. Expect east winds of about 8 mph. Overnight lows will drop to around 69 degrees.
On Sunday, expect sunny skies across the region. Daytime highs will range from 81 degrees in Broward County to 84 degrees in Palm Beach County. Expect southeast winds of about 14 mph. Overnight lows will drop to around 69 degrees. A chance of precipitation remains.
On Monday, forecasts call for a 20 percent chance of showers in Broward, while Palm Beach can expect a 30 percent chance of showers, mainly before 1 p.m. Highs will be around 83 degrees. Expect southwest winds of about 14 mph. Overnight lows will drop to around 49 degrees.
On Tuesday, expect mostly sunny skies across the region. Highs will be around 68 degrees. Expect north winds of about 18 mph. Overnight lows will drop to around 55 degrees.
Dangerous winter storm
Meanwhile, the most significant winter storm in years is moving across a huge swath of the country from the midwest to the east coast and into New England.
“This winter storm will shut it all down,” said Jonathan Porter, chief meteorologist for AccuWeather. “This storm will have a variety of dangerous and life-threatening hazards. The combination of freezing rain, ice and heavy snow, followed by a deep freeze, increases the risk of widespread travel shutdowns, extended business and commerce disruptions and interruptions to daily life.”
Heavy snow of 6-12 inches will be common across the central and eastern U.S., AccuWeather said, with localized amounts of 24-30 inches in parts of Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, southern New York and southern New England. Local amounts of 30 inches are possible, potentially making this one of the biggest storms in recent history.
The Friday-Monday forecast from AccuWeather shows the snowfall expected from a major winter storm spreading across 2,000 miles of the country.
As of Friday morning, about 160 million people — nearly half the population of the United States — were under a variety of watches, warnings and other alerts associated with the winter storm, the National Weather Service announced Thursday afternoon. The alerts, which include snow, ice and extreme cold warnings, stretched from Arizona and Montana in the West to the Carolinas and Maine in the east.
“AccuWeather meteorologists are increasingly concerned that extended power outages durng extreme cold could become life-threatening,” William Clark, AccuWeather’s senior storm warning meteorologist, said. “The sheer size of the freezing rain and ice footprint means utility crews may struggle to concentrate restoration efforts in any one area.”
Big cities including Washington, D.C. and New York City might see enough snow to make travel nearly impossible. Airport delays and cancelations are expected to be widespread, with impacts extending to flight in and out of South Florida airports.
Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.
