'Bundle up': Coldest temps of the year heading to Tallahassee

A blustery blast of Arctic air is expected to descend on Tallahassee and North Florida starting Sunday, bringing the coldest conditions of the season so far.

And while the frosty weather is expected to begin arriving Sunday, Dec. 14, the first night of Hanukkah, it isn't expected to linger, with a quick warm-up well ahead of Christmas.

According to the National Weather Service in Tallahassee, both low temperatures and wind chills are expected to drop into the 20s on the mornings of Monday, Dec. 15, and Tuesday, Dec. 16.

NWS is calling for a medium chance of a hard freeze, which occurs when temperatures dip below 26 degrees, and a medium chance of wind chills dropping to the teens on Dec. 15, the windier of the two days.

"The big thing we want folks to kind of keep an eye on is ... the wind chills on Monday morning," said Wright Dobbs, meteorologist with the Weather Service in Tallahassee. "That cold air will be filtering into the region. Folks who have to be outside, definitely bundle up. You don't want any exposed skin."

In Tallahassee, lows the mornings of Dec. 15-16 are expected to hover around 30 degrees. Dobbs said areas north of Interstate 10 have better chances of seeing a hard freeze, though he said parts south of the interstate could get them as well.

Dreaming of a warm Christmas? What the forecast says for Florida

High temperatures will bounce back to 60 as soon as the afternoon of Dec. 16, with a general warming trend following. 

The long-range forecast shows lows in the low 50s and highs in the low 70s in the run-up to Christmas. Normally this time of year, lows are in the upper 40s and highs in the upper 60s.

"The Christmas forecasts are at least trending to high probabilities of above-normal temperatures, and it looks like a dry pattern, too," Dobbs said. "So a warm and dry Christmas is what's most likely."

Cold night shelters opening Dec. 14

Local governments and community partners will operate cold night shelters Dec. 14 and Dec. 15. People who need shelter those nights should go to the location that best represents their household composition:

• Single Adults (18 and over): The Kearney Center- 2650 Municipal Way

• Families (At least 1 adult and child): HOPE Community- 2729 West Pensacola 

• Youth (ages 10-17): 2407 Roberts Ave- Hotline Number 850-576-6000

People who need shelter must arrive between 4-8 p.m. for intake. People who need assistance accessing StarMetro are asked to call or text 850-759-1895 or email outreach@bigbendcoc.org . 

The homeless population has been informed of cold night shelter operations. For more information, contact the Big Bend Continuum of Care weekdays at (850) 792-5015 or the CESC/Kearney Center at 850-792-9000 after hours or on weekends.

Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or 850-599-2180.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: 'Bundle up': Coldest temps of the year heading to Tallahassee