COOLER WEATHER COMING SOON
Cold front should drop low temperatures into the low 60s or high 50s.
A weekend only the Sunshine State can summon in late November is in the forecast, but first, South Florida must endure a soggy Thanksgiving and damp Black Friday.
An area of low pressure forming in the Gulf of Mexico is expected to push into the state today , pulling a cold front through the peninsula that will help initiate showers that may drop up to an inch of rain in parts of Palm Beach County.
The National Weather Service in Miami is not predicting flooding, but gusty winds following the front could make for blowing rain and hazardous ocean conditions into early Saturday.
“The main story is Thanksgiving and the day after,” said Larry Kelly, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Miami. “After that, it should be a pretty nice holiday weekend.”
Today’s rain chances are up to 60 percent with a slight chance of thunderstorms. Friday also carries a 60 percent chance of rain. Both days are forecast to have high temperatures in the low 80s.
While the dry season officially started in South Florida on Oct.
24, it’s gotten off to a soggy start.
For much of Palm Beach County, November has brought more than 3 inches of rain. That’s nearly an inch more than what is normal, according to the South Florida Water Management District.
Kelly said it’s not unusual this time of year to have cold fronts rush down from the north only to stall out over South Florida or in the Florida Straits. Those stalled fronts can linger, or mosey north and south, initiating rain as they go.
Other parts of Florida have had a drier fall with moderate drought showing up in a small part of the Panhandle for the first time this week. A larger stretch between Baker and Holmes counties is considered abnormally dry by the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Just one strong cold front has made it entirely through the state this fall. That was in late October when overnight temperatures in West Palm Beach dipped to 52 degrees on Oct. 30 with a high that didn’t break 70 that day.
The coldest overnight low this month in West Palm Beach was 66 degrees, with the coolest day still reaching a balmy 77 degrees.
“This front is supposed to move through all the way,” Kelly said. “It should exit the area Friday afternoon and evening with temperatures dropping a little bit into Sunday and Monday.”
Low temperatures Sunday morning should dip to the low 60s in coastal Palm Beach County and high 50s in areas to the west, such as Wellington. High temperatures should stay in the mid-70s.
“By this weekend, the Sunshine State will be living up to its name as the rain pushes out into the Atlantic Ocean,” said AccuWeather meteorologist Ryan Adamson.