Halloween will bring the chills to S.A. in more ways than one

A strong cold front is going to blast a polar air mass into South Texas on Sunday, giving San Antonio its first real taste of winter before November even starts.

Record cold temperatures are expected on Monday as cold air surges into the region. Temperatures will warm a bit on Tuesday, but it’s still expected to be one of the top five coldest Halloweens on record.

When will the front move through?

San Antonio will actually have a quiet start to the day on Sunday. The morning will be mild and quite humid. Temperatures will rise to around 80 degrees by the late morning or early afternoon under partly to mostly cloudy skies.

The cold front will push into San Antonio by the afternoon or early evening, likely between 2 and 5 p.m. After that, temperatures will fall quickly. San Antonio likely will be in the 50s by 8 p.m. and into the 40s by midnight. Cold air continues to rush in early Monday, allowing low temperatures to reach the low to mid 40s to kick Monday off.

The wind will be the biggest issue, making things feel even colder. Winds will jump to around 20 mph as the front moves through, but then increase to 30 mph overnight and into Monday morning. Wind chill temperatures will be in the mid 30s by Monday morning, so you’ll need to dig the winter coat out of the closet. A light jacket won’t do.

There is a chance of showers Sunday evening and into Monday morning. Rainfall should be relatively light, keeping totals generally less than 0.50 inch.

Temperatures will not rise much on Monday. High temperatures will stay in the mid to upper 40s throughout the day with breezy winds. The record cold high temperature for Monday is 48 degrees, which was set in 1925. There is a chance that record could be broken, as temps could stay below 48 all day long.

Halloween forecast

By Tuesday morning, temperatures will start in the low 40s, similar to how they started on Monday morning. The difference will be that temperatures are expected to warm up a bit more by Tuesday afternoon. High temperatures are expected to rise to the upper 50s as skies clear by the second half of the day.

In terms of high temperature, the coldest Halloween of all time in San Antonio happened in 1923, when the high reached only 53 degrees. Only four times in San Antonio’s recorded history has the high temperature failed to reach 60 degrees on Halloween. With a forecasted high of 58 degrees Tuesday, it will likely go down as a top five coldest Halloween on record.

By the time you’re heading out the door with the kids to go trick-or-treating, temperatures will be in the mid 50s at 7 p.m. They’ll fall fast though, reaching the 40s after 9 p.m. Be sure to bundle yourself and the kids up properly before heading out. Low temperatures may even reach the upper 30s overnight and into the early hours Wednesday morning.

Warming trend incoming

After dealing with cold weather for a couple of days, San Antonio will warm right back up during the second half of the week and into the weekend. Temperatures will rise into the low 60s Wednesday and the upper 60s by Thursday. By Friday, the Alamo City will be back into the 70s, and the low 80s are possible by the weekend.

Quiet weather is expected across South Texas, too, as mostly sunny weather dominates the skies and almost no rain chances through the end of the week.