TAMPA, Fla. — As parts of the South are still recovering from last weekend's snow, another shot of bitterly cold air could cross the eastern and midwestern United States.
But, Floridians look like they will escape the worst of the cold air, which may settle over the mid-South, including Memphis, St. Louis, and surrounding areas.
ABC Action News Meteorologist Greg Dee discussed the issue at length and had the following to say about the online chatter about cold air:
- It's winter. This happens all the time.
- There is nothing out there now that's guaranteeing that this next Arctic blast will actually reach central Florida.
- Neither the GFS nor the EURO is actually showing the coldest of the air (blues/purples/fushia colors on model maps) reaching down into Florida. Yes, it'll be cold to our north, but it looks like right now the cold air will dive south, but not as far south as the last one, and then head east into the Atlantic.
- Even the NOAA NWS Climate Prediction Center outlook, see image above, shows high confidence in cold weather for the central US/Midwest next week. But when you look down across Florida, the forecast is not as dire.
- Could it get cold next week? Sure. Will we have a freeze? There is nothing that says a widespread freeze or frost is in the cards for us right now.
- The models are always off on intensity, timing, and placement of the cold this far out. We'll need to wait until the weekend to get a better idea of what we'll actually see.
'They failed my son': Florida mother continues legal push for accountability after son died in prison cell
A Florida mother is demanding answers, claiming in a lawsuit that her son was killed in a state prison, but no one is being held accountable for his death.
Mother continues legal push for accountability after son died in prison cell