The wintry weather predicted for Wednesday night and this morning wasn’t as bad as expected, but meteorologists are still warning of the chance for hazardous weather throughout the weekend.
A wind chill advisory is in effect from 6 tonight until noon Friday. The National Weather Service warns of ice and sleet accumulations and wind chill factors ranging from 0 to 10 degrees.
Ariel Cohen, meteorologist for the National Weather Service, said a cold air mass combined with moisture from the Gulf of Mexico is behind the potential for the cold weather.
Cohen said this morning that the weather “may only be rain now, but it could switch to ice or sleet at any time.”
“As we go through the day, an arctic cold front is going to come through and create some dangerously cold temperatures,” Cohen said.
A string of days with low temperatures like the pattern Mississippi is experiencing now hasn’t happened since 1996, Cohen said.
Extra precautions are recommended to avoid frostbite or hypothermia. Authorities said Wednesday that a man in east Mississippi apparently died from hypothermia.
The Mississippi Department of Transportation is asking motorists to drive cautiously over the weekend, be careful on bridges and watch for ice and other hazards.
A hard freeze warning is also in effect from 6 p.m. today until Sunday.
According to the National Weather Service, the hazardous weather isn’t likely to continue beyond Sunday.
Gov. Haley Barbour declared a state of emergency Wednesday in anticipation of “extreme and prolonged subfreezing temperatures.” He did not invoke protection against price gouging, which is intentionally charging high prices on emergency supplies.
The National Weather Service has also reported lowland flooding near the river and a flood warning continues into Friday night.
According to the weather service, Wednesday’s low of 15 degrees broke a record for Jan. 6 set in1959.
National Weather Service Meteorologist Joanne Culin said there probably wouldn’t be much accumulation in central Mississippi and south of Interstate 20.
Still, she warned that temperatures could be in the teens Friday night so there’s still a chance of patches of ice on roads in much of Mississippi.
Culin said wind chills could dip below zero in the next few days in north Mississippi and high temperatures aren’t expected to rise above freezing through at least Sunday.
Area schools did not call for any delays or cancellations of classes this morning. However, numerous public schools and colleges in other areas of the state were closed today.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
