Rio Grande Valley residents awoke Friday morning to extremely frigid conditions with “feels like” temperatures ranging from 14 to 18 degrees thanks to an arctic blast that pushed through the area late Thursday evening.
That bitter arctic blast that pushed through Texas is “coming like a freight train,” Barry Goldsmith, warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service Brownsville/Rio Grande Valley, said Thursday afternoon.
That blast of cold air was expected to bring freezing temperatures to all the Rio Grande Valley that would continue into Saturday, with “feels likes” temperatures Saturday morning at about 18 degrees in McAllen, 16 degrees in Harlingen and 17 degrees in Brownsville.
Friday’s daytime temperatures will be between 25 to 30 degrees, and on Christmas Eve, they will be between 30 to 35 degrees.
A wind advisory has been issued for Cameron, Willacy and Kenedy counties from 10 p.m. Thursday until 9 a.m. Friday.
A hard freeze warning remains in effect for inland Willacy and northern Hidalgo counties, while a freeze warning has been issued for Starr, northern Hidalgo, and inland Cameron counties, the NWS reports.
A hard freeze warning means sub-freezing temperatures as low as 27 are expected. The freeze warning means sub-freezing temperatures as low as 28 are expected.
Freezes were expected to last about 5 to 7 hours Thursday night, and 7 to 9 hours Friday night in Brownsville; 7 to 9 hours Thursday night, and 12 to 14 hours Friday night in the Harlingen and Weslaco areas; 5 to 7 hours Thursday night, and 9 to 11 hours Friday night in the McAllen area.
The warnings will be in effect from 3 a.m. to noon Friday.
A wind chill warning also remains in effect for all the Valley and will be in effect from 12 a.m. Friday until noon. Dangerously cold wind chills are expected, with wind chills between 10 to 20 degrees.
In preparation for possible icing or sleeting in parts of Cameron County, Texas Department of Transportation crews on Thursday were busy getting the roads read for the possible icing or sleeting by spreading brine solution on them.
According to TxDOT, brine solution helps prevent ice from forming on the pavement. The brine that was placed should last a few days, a TxDOT employee on Thursday.
Possible icing or freezing drizzle could affect Rio Hondo, Lozano, Los Fresnos, Port Isabel, Laguna Vista, Bayview, Laguna Heights and South Padre Island and a portion of Brownsville, Goldsmith said.
If this should occur, it would be between Friday night into Saturday morning, Goldsmith said.
The possibility of power outages with the areas at greatest risks located east of IH-69 and were expected to continue through Christmas morning.
In preparation for the arctic blast, cities and municipalities across the Valley opened warning centers and shelters to those in need of a warm place.
Access to Cameron County beaches on South Padre Island and Boca Chica Beach were closed because of the critical weather conditions. They are to be closed until further notice.
Goldsmith also said there will be a mass cold stunning event of sea turtles along the Texas coastline since the water temperatures will be about 50 to 55 degrees. He said any rescue attempts of the stunned turtles will have to be probably on Christmas Day when the winds and waves recede.
