Ghoulish gusts and sinister storms for some on Halloween
Mother Nature will be putting on her witches hat and will set a spooky mood for some in parts of the central and northwestern United States this Halloween.
It will feel like summer across much of the Northeast this Halloween.
Hang on trick-or-treaters: While warmth may melt the hearts of the creepiest ghouls in the East, there's a chill brewing in the air for part of the central United States and even a storm to help set the mood on All Hallows' Eve in the Northwest, AccuWeather meteorologists are whispering in the winds.
The weather in much of the East will be just fine and dandy for gathering candy (and other goodies) as unseasonably warm conditions prevail. In the Northeast, temperatures will fall from the 70s to the 60s and 50s during the evening hours as the little ghosts and goblins roam the neighborhoods. In the Southeast, temperatures will fall from the 70s and lower 80s during their afternoon high to the 60s in most cases, allowing for jackets to be left at home.
Farther west, the weather will pack a little more Halloween drama.
"In the Midwest, Mississippi Valley, and parts of the Plains, winds will kick up, potentially tossing fall decorations around and sending fallen leaves racing through neighborhoods for a creepy appearance," AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok said.
Accompanying the gusty winds will be a swath of showers that will extend from the Great Lakes to the western and central Gulf Coast and can be heavy enough in some cases to thoroughly soak even the most confident little monsters. There will also be some embedded thunderstorms within the shower activity that can add lightning flashes in the sky from a great distance.
"But on a more serious note, claps of thunder will mean that the lightning bolts are close enough to be of concern for those outdoors," Pastelok said, "Anyone outdoors should move inside at the first rumble of thunder."
The showers and thunderstorms will mark the approach of a strong cold front. Warmth that began the day in parts of the Midwest and Mississippi Valley will be followed by a swift chill as the evening progresses, Pastelok said. Around St. Louis, for example, balmy conditions will be fleeting as temperatures tumble to the 50s and 40s, with a gusty wind adding to the chill in the evening.
In the Upper Midwest, in metro areas, such as Minneapolis, it'll be snow that causes some trouble for trick-or-treaters. Locally heavy snow will fall in parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin and the western part of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
Conditions over much of the Great Plains, Rockies and Southwest will be dry and just fine for trick-or-treating Thursday, but another zone where the weather may do some haunting is in the Northwest.
"The major problem area on Halloween will be in the Northwest where a storm will bring areas of rain and mountain snow from Washington and Oregon to part of Northern California and northern Idaho and western Montana," Pastelok said.
The Northwest, along with parts of the Great Lakes region, is where the rain may last long enough to be a major deterrent for outdoor trick-or-treating.
Whether you’ll be trick-or-treating or handing out candy, the Red Cross has tips (no tricks) to keep your family safe this Halloween.
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