A chilly South Florida weekend began Saturday with temperatures expected to drop as the sun goes down, though some South Floridians are already bundled up.
The cold front which arrived Friday will plunge parts of the region into feels-like temperatures of the 30s and 40s, making for an even chillier weekend than New Year’s Eve weekend, the coldest weekend of the season so far.
Temperatures dipped into the 60s in most areas early Saturday morning, reaching the mid-50s near Lake Okeechobee. Highs Saturday afternoon will reach the low 70s for a cool but pleasant day.
But it’s Saturday night into Sunday morning when South Florida will reach winter weather. Temperatures will begin their descent as the sun sets, according to Luke Culver, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service Miami, and reaching their lowest point between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m.
“Once the sun goes down tonight is when we’ll start to see cooler temperatures,” Culver said. “It’ll just start to gradually cool down throughout the night.”
The coolest areas will be across the interior, with lows in the upper 30s in Glades and Hendry counties. But the wind chill will make it feel like the 30s in areas of Palm Beach County as well, Culver said.
Meanwhile, the wind will cause “feels like” temperatures for most of inland Broward to stay in the 40s.
The expected lows are a couple degrees below the chilly New Year’s Eve weekend cold snap earlier this month. But the wind chill will make it noticeably colder.
Some areas, like Glades and Hendry counties, are under a wind chill advisory, which means residents should “use caution” and “wear appropriate clothing,” Culver said, “potentially a hat or gloves if you think you need to wear that.”
South Floridians should be spared from the need for winter clothes, although those not used to colder weather might still want to bundle up.
As soon as the sun comes up, however, “it’ll rapidly warm right up out of those temps,” Culver said. Highs Sunday should reach the mid-60s but not surpass 70 in most of South Florida.
By Monday morning, temperatures will jump back up to 10 degrees in most places, and by Tuesday, they’ll reach the upper 70s, the start of a warm week.
