National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologists have issued a freeze warning for 10 states in the South this week as temperatures are expected to plunge below 32 degrees across the region.
The last few weeks have brought a range of unexpected weather across the United States from abnormally warm temperatures in late February across the Midwest to a “biblical” blizzard in California that dumped as much as 10 feet of snow in some mountain regions. Last week, a strong winter storm covered much of Colorado and plunged temperatures along the West Coast by more than 25 degrees. Now, 10 states in the South will experience chilly temperatures as well.
The states impacted by the freeze warning include northeastern Texas, southwestern Oklahoma, northeastern Louisiana, nearly all of Arkansas, western Tennessee, nearly all of Mississippi, nearly all of Alabama, northern Georgia, northwestern South Carolina and western North Carolina.
The freeze warning will take effect beginning on Tuesday morning in most states, but temperatures could dip on Monday night in some places.
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“Frost and freeze conditions could kill crops, other sensitive vegetation and possibly damage unprotected outdoor plumbing,” the warning from the NWS said. “Take steps now to protect tender plants from the cold. To prevent water pipes from freezing; wrap or drain or allow them to drip slowly.”
The lowest temperatures were anticipated near Memphis, Tennessee, where meteorologists forecast that it could drop as low as 24 degrees.
Typically during this time of year, Memphis’ low temperatures are 45 degrees and high temperatures are 65 degrees, although NWS meteorologist Andrew Sniezak told Newsweek that brief cold spells aren’t abnormal.
“They can and do happen. It can get below freezing, but if it gets down to 24, that might come close to tying or breaking a record,” Sniezak said. “So, we’ll see how that goes.”
He also said that a large area of high pressure is moving into the central U.S. and bringing with it cold, dry air.
“This drier air allows temperatures to drop at night,” Sniezak added.
According to the NWS, a freeze warning is issued when “significant, widespread freezing temperatures are expected.”
“A Freeze Warning is issued in the autumn until the end of the growing season (marked by the occurrence of first widespread freeze). The normal end of the growing season is mid to late October west of the Blue Ridge and early November east of the Blue Ridge,” the NWS webpage said. “However, during anomalously warm autumns, the growing season may be extended past the normal end of the growing season. A Freeze Warning is issued in the spring at the start of the growing season (when it is late enough to cause damage to new plants and crops).”
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.