Winter is coming to the southland

Click the link for updated Hazardous Weather Outlook and Special Weather Statement for the Houston area.

It is hard to write about an impending ice storm and hard freeze when it is 75 F outside but it is a coming down. As the map shows (courtesy of The Weather Channel) there is a sharp temperature gradient cutting across southeast Texas from Laredo, TX to Sheveport, LA. The temperatures here in SE Houston haven't started to drop yet but they should start falling around midnight and continue down with predictions as low as the mid-20's by Tuesday night.

These super cold temperatures are very welcome because a hard freeze will deplete the ravenous mosquito population that has been eating us alive for the past few years. We will certainly see a drop off in the number of mosquitoes as well as the size. Having smaller and fewer bloodsuckers divebombing us in the early evening is a welcome change.

The weather predictions are also calling for sleet and freezing rain to come as far south as downtown Houston and may even make it to the coast. When the NY Times published a reasonably fair and balanced article I said the hell has frozen over. My euphemism for this is that South Texas will get snow (sorry Gayle) as a result. Well maybe we will get some snow or at least a couple millimeters of sleet with this Arctic blast.


In all seriousness, a strong Arctic front will push through southeast Texas tomorrow and may make the next few days a bit exciting. Fortunately the kids have tomorrow off for MLK day but we may be looking at a "snow day" on Tuesday if the worse of the weather drive through.