Numerous cold weather alerts have been issued for parts of Texas, including the Texas-Mexico border, as the “coldest air of the season” comes on Monday night.
The National Weather Service (NWS) office in Midland/Odessa issued a freeze watch, while the El Paso office delivered a special weather statement warning of freezing temperatures. The alerts come as a “strong cold front” approaches the region on Monday night.
The NWS office in El Paso cautioned that the upcoming chilly temperatures would be the coldest of the season.
“A cold front will move through tonight and drop lows tomorrow into the 20s and 30s, but winds will make it feel colder,” the office said on X, formerly Twitter. “The winds will die off Tuesday night and allow the coldest temperatures of the fall/winter to occur.”
The low temperature in El Paso on Monday was 34 degrees Fahrenheit. Low temperatures could dip to 28 degrees by Wednesday morning. The NWS office expects El Paso temperatures to drop below freezing 80 percent of the time.
“The El Paso Metro area is the only location in the region that has not yet dropped below freezing this fall/winter,” an infographic accompanying the post stated. “The coldest it has been at the El Paso airport was 33 degrees on Nov 9th.”
If temperatures drop below freezing in El Paso, it will be the first time since February 18.
The infographic states that if the airport drops below freezing on Wednesday, it will mark 296 days between freezes, tying for the 5th longest stretch between the last and first freeze. “The longest stretch between freezes was in 2017 (309 days).”
However, NWS lead meteorologist Anthony Brown told Newsweek that low temperatures near freezing are usual for this time of year in El Paso. In reality, El Paso usually has its first freeze of the season around November 13.
However, the frigid temperatures may surprise some who have been enjoying the pleasant weather.
Temperatures will rise somewhat during the weekend.
We advised people near the western Texas-Mexico border to protect outdoor plumbing and plants ahead of the freeze.
“Take steps now to protect tender plants from the cold,” the freeze watch advised. “Cover the outdoor faucets. Wrap, drain, or gently let the water pipes drip to prevent them from freezing. Bring pets indoors or provide them with warm, dry shelter.
A warming trend, forecast to begin across much of the country later this week, arrives ahead of the cold front. Once warmer temperatures arrive, the NWS Climate Prediction Center predicts that every U.S. state will see above-average temperatures in the weeks leading up to Christmas.