After the snowiest two day-stretch so far this winter, the Lehigh Valley is about to get a break from frozen precipitation. That’s the good news.
The bad news: It’s going to be really, really cold.
Some of the coldest weather of the season is set for the next several days, with temperatures likely dropping into the single digits along with wind chill values below zero, according to the National Weather Service.
The deep freeze started overnight as an arctic airmass moved in, with temperatures dipping into the mid teens. High temperatures Monday will warm up to around freezing, and that might seem warm in contrast to what’s ahead.
By Monday night into Tuesday morning, temperatures could be as low as the single digits according to the weather service.
“Combined with breezy winds expected Monday night, this will result in wind chills between -10 and -15 in the southern Poconos, near or below zero over the Lehigh Valley, and in thesingle digits over the rest of the area,” the weather service’s Mount Holly, New Jersey, office noted in its forecast discussion.
Daytime highs Tuesday will offer little relief as they struggle to get out of the teens. A high of just 20 is forecast for the Allentown area. In the Poconos, wind chills could struggle to get above zero, even during the day.
Tuesday night could be slightly colder than Monday night, according to the weather service forecast.
Things will finally warm up by Thursday, with a high in the upper 30s expected. The relief won’t last long, as daytime highs Friday through the weekend drop back into the 20s.
As if the cold wasn’t band enough, the brief reprieve from storm systems impacting the area could come to an end by Saturday.
“The weather pattern could get more active again for next weekend but confidence is low on this,” forecasters noted in their discussion. As of now, the weather service forecast indicates there’s a chance of snow Saturday into Sunday, but the chance of precipitation is between 30% and 40%.
Looking back at this weekend’s pair of winter storms, both overperformed and delivered more snow than was initially expected, with accumulations over the two days approaching double digits. At Lehigh Valley International Airport, 5.1 inches fell Saturday and another 3.4 Sunday, for a combined 8.5 inches.
So far this winter, around 17 inches of snow has been recorded at the airport, according to weather service data. That’s nearly as much as the 17.8 inches that the area received all of last winter.
Here is the extended forecast for the Lehigh Valley:
Monday: Increasing clouds, with a high near 32. Southwest wind 5 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.
Monday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 11. West wind 10 to 15 mph.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 20. Wind chill values as low as -2. West wind 10 to 15 mph.
Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 8. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 31.
Wednesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 24.
Thursday: Partly sunny, with a high near 37.
Thursday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 15.
Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 28.
Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 16.
Saturday: A chance of snow. Partly sunny, with a high near 27. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Saturday Night: A chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 12. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Sunday: A chance of snow. Partly sunny, with a high near 20. Chance of precipitation is 40%.