Florida Public Radio Emergency Network (FPREN) Storm Center | By Irene Sans
Tis’ that time of the year! And we are not referring to the holidays. It is the time of year when temperature fluctuations happen, and they occur faster this week as a cold front arrives and brings down temperatures below normal for this time of year, just for one day across Florida.
On Wednesday a cold front is moving from north to south over Florida. This cold front is bringing rounds of rain over Florida, more intense across northern regions, while some showers could still be squeezed out across southern areas.
Central Florida
For Central Florida, the rain and storms will exit by Wednesday afternoon. Temperatures will fall throughout the day on Wednesday. After sunset, the skies will be mainly clear, allowing temperatures to drop to the low 40s quickly, similar to those across the Tampa Bay area. Thursday afternoon will be breezy, with gusts reaching 20 mph, which might help the afternoon feel as if temperatures were in the upper 50s rather than the low 60s.
Northern Florida
The cold front will bring heavier showers and a few thunderstorms across North and Central Florida. There could be a few thunderstorms that can be strong to severe. The storms have started since early this morning across northern Florida. The Gainesville area has not received a good rain measurement of 2 inches since Oct. 9. A few days have received traces of up to 0.09 inches since then, but it’s been overall dry for the last 2 months across northern Florida.
Thursday morning will be cold after the cold front moves through and the dry air sinks in. Jacksonville can expect to wake up on Thursdays with temperatures in the mid- to upper 30s, about 10 degrees below normal. Temperatures will be much colder across inland and suburban areas. Frost advisories are already in effect between 3 a.m. and 8 a.m. on Thursday due to the cold temperatures that could develop frost overnight.
The frost advisory extends southward over Gainesville. The low temperature will be around 32 degrees, and the afternoon will warm to the low 60s.
South Florida
As South Florida’s drought worsens, this will not be the front that will dent this trend. There could still be a few showers that affect South Florida on Wednesday late afternoon, but overall, there will be drier air filtering as it moves fast out of the area by the evening. Temperatures will quickly fall overnight, and residents will wake up to temperatures around the 50s on Thursday morning. The wind will remain strong at times, with gusts reaching 25 mph, which will help make the temperatures feel chillier. Temperatures will reach the low 70s on Thursday afternoon from Southwest Florida through the Florida Keys, including southeast Florida.
The rebound
Expect temperatures to rebound quickly by Friday as the high-pressure system moves quickly eastward and the wind veers coming in from the east across much of the Peninsula. This change in winds will bring back close to average temperatures on Friday. The morning will still be chilly, especially across northern Florida and the Panhandle, but the southern half of Florida will be nice. The afternoon will be in the 70s for much of the south half of Florida, while northern Florida will reach the upper 60s.
Above-average temperatures return for the weekend through about mid-week next week, with temperatures between 5 and 10 degrees above average in the mornings and afternoons. Clouds will also be partly present with east coast showers during this stretch at times with the arrival of pockets of moisture from the Atlantic.
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