Polar Vortex will bring temperatures below freezing for 80% of US population

Polar Vortex weather map FOX WEATHER

Important Takeaways:

  • Most of the US will enjoy milder temperatures on Thursday, but the warmup will be brief as a polar vortex will send temperatures tumbling below freezing for most of the nation starting this weekend.
  • The potentially life-threatening cold is due to a disrupted polar vortex. The FOX Forecast Center said a lobe of the polar vortex will dip to the south and move into the US this weekend and into next week.
  • “These are the types of weather systems that even bring cold air to Florida,” Merwin said. “You know, there’s only maybe one or two times a year where we get a chunk of arctic air that really invades the country and gets all the way down to the Gulf Coast. This is one of those. So, if you’re a snowbird, you like to escape down to the South — there’s no escaping this. Everyone will feel it.”
  • All the lower 48 states and more than 80% of the population will see temperatures drop below freezing. The deep chill will be felt as far as the Deep South, with only South Florida escaping the icy grip of the arctic blast.
  • “That is cold enough that you do need to prepare,” Merwin said.
  • That is especially true for those who live in parts of western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee, who are still in recovery mode after Hurricane Helene devastated the region and left countless people without homes.
  • “Looking at the wind chill, that adds a whole other layer to this,” Merwin said. “I mean, it will feel like negative 50 degrees in some spots across America come Monday morning.”

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