Burst of February warmth to grip the South into the weekend
Numerous records may be broken into Saturday as an abnormally warm pattern sets up across the Southern states.
Parts of Louisiana had twice as much snow as parts of Alaska this January, shattering historical records.
While a 'rinse and repeat' pattern featuring multiple winter storms impacts the Midwest and Northeast into next week, AccuWeather meteorologists say that locations in the South will be cashing in on an opposite weather pattern.
"A widespread swath of abnormally warm conditions is expanding eastward out of the Southwest and southern Plains, allowing for a wave of springlike conditions across the region and record-breaking temperatures," explained AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Bob Larson.
Long-standing records crushed Monday
Earlier in the week, numerous records were broken from the Southwest to the Ohio Valley as this pattern kicked off.
"On Monday alone, 75 high-temperature records were tied or broken across the nation. The record-challenging warmth has migrated eastward and into the South Central and Southeastern states, placing additional records in jeopardy," noted Larson.
Several temperature records that were broken across the Ohio Valley were long-standing records dating back to the late 1800s. Among those included the cities of Cincinnati, Columbus, Ohio, and Lexington, Kentucky.
Warmth to build into Saturday
Most locations across the south-central U.S. and Gulf Coast observed afternoon temperatures peaking in the 70s and 80s Fahrenheit on Thursday. Widespread highs in the 60s F even expanded from parts of Oklahoma and northern Arkansas through the Tennessee Valley and mid-Atlantic states on Thursday.
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The number of potential records at risk peaked on Thursday when temperatures soared between 15-25 degrees above the historical average for early February. Cities like Houston and El Paso, Texas, were among some cities that tied or broke their daily records on Thursday.
The warm pattern is set to surge again for some spots into the weekend, forecasters note. Some locations will see high temperatures Saturday even higher than midweek values, placing records in jeopardy once again.
By Sunday, a cooler pattern is expected to expand across the South. Next week, the region will need to be on alert for rounds of rain and thunderstorms, some of which can be severe, as a frenetic weather pattern sets up heading into the middle of February.
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