While Acadiana's first full day of winter will be milder, drastic changes are on the way as an arctic air mass of Siberian origin will plow through the area Thursday night into Friday bringing pipe-busting cold for several days through Christmas Day.
In the near term, expect temperatures to not change much overnight with lows mostly in the mid-40s. Some patchy fog and/or areas with reduced visibility will be possible by daybreak.
Southwesterly winds Wednesday will bring milder temperatures into the mid-60s Thursday under mostly cloudy skies.
Scattered showers will be possible later into Thursday afternoon/early evening as a very strong cold front barrels through the region Thursday night.
The front will be an extension of a major winter storm that will bring blizzard conditions and sub-zero temperatures across the Northern U.S.
For Acadiana it will be a dry cold with no precipitation expected while it stays very cold through the weekend.
Acadiana will be looking at temperatures dropping below, and likely staying below freezing except for a few hours Sunday afternoon.
On top of the extremely cold temperatures their will be strong northwesterly winds gusting 30-40 mph late Thursday night into Friday likely making for single digit wind chills Friday morning and chills in the teens Friday afternoon despite some sunshine returning to the area.
Temperatures will drop from the lower 60s Thursday afternoon to below freezing shortly after midnight, and then into the upper teens to lower 20s across the Acadiana area by Friday morning.
A Hard Freeze Warning will be in effect for Acadiana starting Thursday evening.
Protect pipes, people, pets, livestock and plants...and covering plants won't be enough with gusty winds in the forecast.
Hard freezes are expected each night through the weekend.
While each home's susceptibility to freezing pipes is different (consult a plumber/expert that specifically knows your structure), the best way to prevent bursting is to turn off the water outside that goes to your home, and drain the pipes before the deep freeze begins (this is a good idea if you will be out of town for the weekend).
This means that you will be without water including for flushing toilets, so you can fill up the bathtub with water should you go this route.
Other tips short of turning your water off include turning the heat up in your home and opening indoor attic doors to get some warmth into the attic.
If possible, you can also push some heat into the attic via bathroom/kitchen fans (that evacuate air into the attic of course). Also open kitchen cabinets to let the warmer air in your home keep the pipes a little warmer.
Although running water (above trickle strength) also slows the freezing of pipes, it lowers community water pressure which can lead to worse problems, including fighting fires.
Most newer homes on concrete slabs are much less susceptible to frozen pipes versus older and elevated homes...again consult a plumber that knows your property...KATC is not expert for your home!
If pipes are going to freeze, this would most likely be Friday and/or Saturday nights.
Also please DO NOT use your oven or burners to heat your home, this can cause a major fire.
If using space heaters, plug them directly into the wall and make sure there is 3 feet of space surrounding the heater as to not catch anything on fire...and make sure your home has a carbon monoxide detector, especially if you're planning on using a fireplace etc.
Finally, please check on the elderly and infirmed to make sure they are adequately prepared.
Temperatures will finally moderate back into the 50s early next week, with a much warmer pattern accompanied by rain chances likely toward the end of next week into the following weekend.
See the KATC 10 Day Forecast for the latest and stay warm!
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