Dry, breezy and cooler with a chance for frost as fronts roll in for the weekend

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - Sunshine and dry air are locked in this afternoon, and highs will run a little warmer than average ahead of the first front. Don’t let that fool you. Cooler air is on the way, and it moves in quickly tonight. Lows fall into the 40s north and west of the tidal lakes and the lower 50s south of the lakes. Winds stay elevated Thursday night, so boaters should keep that in mind, because conditions could turn hazardous for small craft as high pressure builds in behind the front.

A series of dry fronts keeps the cooler trend going into the weekend. Friday’s highs only reach the upper 60s and lower 70s, and lows dip into the mid to upper 30s along and north of the I-10/12 corridor Friday night. Winds should stay just strong enough to keep frost from forming that night. Saturday is the coolest day of the stretch, with highs in the mid 60s and lows back in the mid to upper 30s north of I-10 and the 40s to the south. Lighter winds Saturday night mean some frost could form in the drainages of the Pearl and Pascagoula Rivers. If you have tender plants up north, you may want to cover them.

Dry air and the ongoing drought also keep fire spread concerns elevated across the northern part of the area from Thursday through Sunday. Humidity could fall to 20 to 30 percent on Friday and Saturday afternoons. If you live in a parish under a burn ban, don’t burn outdoors at all. If you aren’t under a ban, take extra precautions. Clouds build Sunday as winds turn breezy and easterly, and a few light showers are possible Sunday night into Monday, but the trend is drier. Any rain that does fall won’t be enough to ease the drought. A coastal low could bring rough seas to the Gulf late Sunday into Monday, with winds of 20 to 30 knots and seas of 6 to 10 feet in the open waters. Monday’s highs stay in the low to mid 60s, and temperatures climb back to near 70 by Wednesday. Stay with the Fox 8 Weather app for the latest on the timing of each front.

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