The South will finally start to thaw this weekend
The snow and ice lingering from a rare winter storm in the South is set to begin its thaw as temperatures slowly return to normal starting this weekend, forecasters said Friday.
The storm and several days of cold air covered the deep South from parts of Texas to Florida, bringing heavy snow to areas that don't normally see it earlier this week in what forecasters called a once-in-a-generation event.
Temperatures already started inching up on Thursday, but a dip back below freezing overnight can refreeze melted snow, creating dangerous ice on roads and walkways. Black ice is difficult to see and poses a high risk for accidents.
On Friday morning, millions of people in the northern half of Florida and parts of Alabama and Georgia were under a freeze warning. Lows across the region on Friday and Saturday are expected to be in the 20s and 30s with highs reaching into the 40s or lower 50s, the National Weather Service said.
When will the South get back to normal?
Temperatures will be below their averages for this time of year for much of the South again on Saturday, but a gradual warmup will bring them back to normal by the end of the weekend and into early next week, the weather service said.
The warmer temperatures will start in Texas and make their way east, National Weather Service meteorologist Frank Pereira told Paste BN earlier in the week. Texas should experience its last night of below freezing temperatures overnight Friday into Saturday, and there will be a "significant" warmup on Sunday in Texas and Louisiana, he said. Warmer temperatures should make their way to Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas a day later.
Until then, "Please continue to protect your pets, people, pipes, plants through the duration of this cold snap," the weather service in Tallahassee, Florida, said, noting that overnight lows will lead to chilly mornings and potentially dangerous roads.
By Sunday, daytime highs in the Tampa Bay region are expected to return to the 60s and 70s and get warmer as the week progresses, the weather service there said. New Orleans, hit hard by the snow, will see temperatures in the low to mid 60s by Sunday with conditions on most of its roads improving Friday and beyond.
Will it warm up in time for Florida's Gasparilla festival?
Gasparilla Pirate Festival attendees in Tampa, Florida, on Saturday should expect an afternoon in the low 60s after recovering from a freezing morning and overnight low in the mid 20s to low 30s.
The popular tradition of an annual parade and pirate-themed events is named after a famed 18th-century pirate, who may or may not have been a real person, the Paste BN Network in Florida reported.
By the time the 106th Gasparilla Invasion sails the Bay and docks at the Tampa Convention Center at about 1 p.m., temperatures will be in the upper 50s on their way to a high of about 62 degrees and clear skies.
How much snow fell during the storm?
In Florida, the Pensacola area broke the state's 130-year-old record, with 8.9 inches of snow recorded at Pensacola International Airport.
New Orleans International Airport recorded at least 8 inches of snow, triple the previous record set more than 60 years ago.
Up to 6 inches fell in the Houston-Galveston, Texas, area.
Contributing: Gabe Hauari, John Bacon and John Little