Panhandle braces for bitter cold all week

Saturday
Dec 30, 2017 at 5:10 PM Dec 30, 2017 at 5:10 PM

Weather experts are warning Northwest Florida residents to brace for potentially bitter cold settling in around New Year’s Eve and lasting throughout next week.

Annie Blanks @DestinLogAnnie

FORT WALTON BEACH — Weather experts are warning Northwest Florida residents to brace for potentially bitter cold settling in around New Year’s Eve and lasting throughout next week.

Don Shepherd, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Mobile, Alabama, said Thursday that models were showing the potential for nighttime temperatures to dip into the high 20s in coastal areas and low to mid-20s inland beginning Tuesday.

The Weather Channel called for lows in the high teens Monday, Thursday and Friday nights, with highs barely reaching freezing.

“Right now, the primary story is just the cold that really lasts for all of next week,” Shepherd said. “Nighttime lows will be below freezing each night in the northern parts of (Panhandle) counties, and most likely in the southern part of the counties as well.”

Shepherd said while light snow and freezing rain were expected New Year’s Eve in northern Alabama and southeastern Mississippi, Northwest Florida residents likely could expect only cold temperatures and rainy conditions Sunday.

“(Snow chances) are expected generally along and north of the Interstate 65 corridor right now," he said. "It’s just a low-end chance of regular precipitation.”

In Bay County, the Panama City Rescue Mission offers shelter for men when temperatures are below a sustained 45 degrees. The mission's women's center is currently closed for repairs, but a representative said Saturday nearby First United Methodist Church offers shelter for women, children and families when the temperature dips below 32.

Shepherd said snow chances next week could rise if any moisture moves into the area and mixes with the extreme cold — conditions meteorologists would monitor closely. The big story for the area though, he said, will be the freezing temperatures.

“Anything below 20 degrees we do issue hard freeze, so especially in the northern part of the county there, you may see some watches and warnings, because it’s going to be well below freezing,” he said. “Keep a check on the elderly and your neighbors, and bring the pets in.”

 

Elsewhere in the South

Across the Deep South on Saturday, forecasters issued winter weather advisories in multiple states and warned that freezing temperatures would likely last for the next several days. The advisories covered eastern Louisiana and most of Mississippi and Alabama.

Freezing rain and a wintry mix was possible through the weekend, the National Weather Service said. Then, low temperatures could drop below 15 degrees in parts of Louisiana and Mississippi during the first few days of 2018, forecasters said.

In Georgia, advocates for the homeless feared the unusually long stretch of frigid weather in Atlanta could kill some homeless people in the city. The temperature in Atlanta is expected to dip into the low 20s on New Year's Eve, and plunge into the teens Monday and Tuesday night.

"A lot of people are ready for the night but occasionally we bump into people who are totally unprepared," said Drew Benton, who works with volunteers who go beneath bridges and other areas where Atlanta's homeless spend the night. They give them clothing, blankets and other items on the coldest nights of the year.

"We've seen people in a T-shirt and jeans walking around. We've seen children out there before — we've seen a lot of circumstances where people are just totally unprepared," Benton said.

Benton's nonprofit, Project Live Love, blasts an email to volunteers announcing a "go night" whenever the temperature is expected to fall below 31 degrees. He said they're prepared to hit the streets and distribute supplies for the next eight nights if the freezing temperatures continue as expected.

One item they hand out is dry socks, which can be a life-saver.

"A lot of our freezes will come with a rain before it and if you get your feet wet, you're in a lot of trouble," he said.

The start of the new year will also mark the coldest temperatures in Atlanta since its largest shelter, known as Peachtree-Pine, closed. People who work with the homeless believe that the closure this fall has now exposed more homeless people to the elements.

When Benton's teams distributed supplies on Dec. 8, "the streets were just covered with people," he said. Under one bridge downtown, they saw about 150 people trying to stay warm.

Saturday
Dec 30, 2017 at 5:10 PM Dec 30, 2017 at 5:10 PM

Weather experts are warning Northwest Florida residents to brace for potentially bitter cold settling in around New Year’s Eve and lasting throughout next week.

Annie Blanks @DestinLogAnnie

FORT WALTON BEACH — Weather experts are warning Northwest Florida residents to brace for potentially bitter cold settling in around New Year’s Eve and lasting throughout next week.

Don Shepherd, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Mobile, Alabama, said Thursday that models were showing the potential for nighttime temperatures to dip into the high 20s in coastal areas and low to mid-20s inland beginning Tuesday.

The Weather Channel called for lows in the high teens Monday, Thursday and Friday nights, with highs barely reaching freezing.

“Right now, the primary story is just the cold that really lasts for all of next week,” Shepherd said. “Nighttime lows will be below freezing each night in the northern parts of (Panhandle) counties, and most likely in the southern part of the counties as well.”

Shepherd said while light snow and freezing rain were expected New Year’s Eve in northern Alabama and southeastern Mississippi, Northwest Florida residents likely could expect only cold temperatures and rainy conditions Sunday.

“(Snow chances) are expected generally along and north of the Interstate 65 corridor right now," he said. "It’s just a low-end chance of regular precipitation.”

In Bay County, the Panama City Rescue Mission offers shelter for men when temperatures are below a sustained 45 degrees. The mission's women's center is currently closed for repairs, but a representative said Saturday nearby First United Methodist Church offers shelter for women, children and families when the temperature dips below 32.

Shepherd said snow chances next week could rise if any moisture moves into the area and mixes with the extreme cold — conditions meteorologists would monitor closely. The big story for the area though, he said, will be the freezing temperatures.

“Anything below 20 degrees we do issue hard freeze, so especially in the northern part of the county there, you may see some watches and warnings, because it’s going to be well below freezing,” he said. “Keep a check on the elderly and your neighbors, and bring the pets in.”

 

Elsewhere in the South

Across the Deep South on Saturday, forecasters issued winter weather advisories in multiple states and warned that freezing temperatures would likely last for the next several days. The advisories covered eastern Louisiana and most of Mississippi and Alabama.

Freezing rain and a wintry mix was possible through the weekend, the National Weather Service said. Then, low temperatures could drop below 15 degrees in parts of Louisiana and Mississippi during the first few days of 2018, forecasters said.

In Georgia, advocates for the homeless feared the unusually long stretch of frigid weather in Atlanta could kill some homeless people in the city. The temperature in Atlanta is expected to dip into the low 20s on New Year's Eve, and plunge into the teens Monday and Tuesday night.

"A lot of people are ready for the night but occasionally we bump into people who are totally unprepared," said Drew Benton, who works with volunteers who go beneath bridges and other areas where Atlanta's homeless spend the night. They give them clothing, blankets and other items on the coldest nights of the year.

"We've seen people in a T-shirt and jeans walking around. We've seen children out there before — we've seen a lot of circumstances where people are just totally unprepared," Benton said.

Benton's nonprofit, Project Live Love, blasts an email to volunteers announcing a "go night" whenever the temperature is expected to fall below 31 degrees. He said they're prepared to hit the streets and distribute supplies for the next eight nights if the freezing temperatures continue as expected.

One item they hand out is dry socks, which can be a life-saver.

"A lot of our freezes will come with a rain before it and if you get your feet wet, you're in a lot of trouble," he said.

The start of the new year will also mark the coldest temperatures in Atlanta since its largest shelter, known as Peachtree-Pine, closed. People who work with the homeless believe that the closure this fall has now exposed more homeless people to the elements.

When Benton's teams distributed supplies on Dec. 8, "the streets were just covered with people," he said. Under one bridge downtown, they saw about 150 people trying to stay warm.

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