Rusty's Forecast - Windy evening, brutal cold this week

Gusty winds continue to affect the area this evening. A Wind Advisory is in effect through 6pm. Wind gusts in the 30 to 45mph range will be possible. Winds will slowly relax a bit this evening, with gusts falling off after sunset. North winds of only 5 to 10mph are expected overnight. As temperatures fall off into the single digits, even with light winds the wind chills will still fall into the 0 to -10 degree range by late tonight and Tuesday morning.

A reinforcing shot of Arctic air will arrive on Tuesday, bringing with it a shot at some light snow Tuesday morning. The snow will be moving quickly, so accumulations will be limited, but a couple spots could pick up a 1/2" of snow. Winds will remain on the breezy side, so any fresh snow will likely blow around. Temperatures on Tuesday will struggle to warm up, with afternoon highs only reaching 10 to maybe 13 degrees. Wind chills will remain in the -5 to -15 degree range all day.

Tuesday night will likely be the coldest night we have seen all season, with conditions becoming dangerously cold. A Wind Chill Warning will go into effect at 6pm, lasting through Noon Wednesday. A Wind Chill Warning means wind chills of -30 to -40 degrees are possible. In those conditions, frostbite can develop on exposed skin in as a little as 10 minutes. If you have to be outdoors Tuesday night or Wednesday morning, you will want to limit your exposure as much as possible and take extra care to really bundle up, covering as much skin as possible. Actual air temperatures may drop as low as -15 degrees, which would be approaching the record low for Wednesday morning.

Wednesday will remain frigid all day long. Skies will be mostly cloudy with north winds continuing. That will make it very hard to warm up, and highs may struggle to climb above zero. Some slight snow is possible in the morning, mainly to the west of the metro.

Conditions begin to improve on Thursday with highs back in the teens. Temperatures climb close to freezing on Friday, and we could actually climb back into the 40s by the weekend!