Wind Chill Advisory: Arctic Air Settles Over Metro Detroit Through Weekend
DETROIT (WWJ) - Metro Detroit is about to get a double-dose of bitter winter weather and dangerous wind chills as we head into the weekend.
"Temperatures will be very cold Thursday and will struggle to get up in the teens," said CBS 62 Chief Meteorologist Jim Madaus. "The main weather feature will be gusty winds, in some cases up to 30 miles per hour. And with these very cold temperatures, we're talking about wind chills well below zero -- so bundle up."
The National Weather Service has issued a Wind Chill Advisory, now in effect until 11 a.m. Friday for Lenawee, Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, St. Clair, Washtenaw and Wayne counties.
Forecasters say arctic air will surge into southeastern Michigan Thursday morning, producing wind chills of 15 to 20 below zero. A brief reprieve will come during the afternoon, when wind chills are expected to rise to 5 to 10 below zero, before everything takes a dangerous drop overnight. Lows around 10 below, wind chills of 15 to 24 below zero are expected through Friday morning.
Metro Detroiters could also see a couple more inches of snow on Friday, Madaus said, before the bitter cold settles in with some of the lowest temperatures we've seen this winter.
"It will be in the 20s Saturday but on Sunday, only 4 degrees is the high and 6 below zero overnight," he said. "Even on Monday, President's Day, 5 below for starters and we only jump up to 16."
Wind chills of this magnitude could lead to frostbite of exposed skin in less than 30 minutes. If you must venture outdoors, be sure to cover as much skin as possible with appropriate winter clothing.
Here's the local forecast from the CBS Detroit weather team:
Thursday: Variable cloudiness and windy. A few flurries or snow showers possible. High 11F. Low -4F. Winds NW at 20 to 30 mph.
Friday: Partly cloudy skies in the morning will give way to cloudy skies during the afternoon. A few flurries or snow showers possible. High 21F. Low 16F. Winds SW at 10 to 20 mph.
Saturday: Windy. Light snow during the morning will give way to mostly cloudy conditions during the afternoon. High 24F. Low -9F. Winds NW at 25 to 35 mph.
Sunday: Mainly sunny with increasing clouds overnight. High 6F. Low -7F. Winds NW at 10 to 20 mph.
Monday: Intervals of clouds and sunshine. High 18F. Low 12F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph.
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