Frost/Freeze — Kenedy, Texas

2018-01-03 · Kenedy, Texas

Event narrative

The cooperative observation stations 7 miles east of Sarita and 4 miles southeast of Armstrong recorded minimum temperatures of 29 and 28 degrees, respectively, shortly after daybreak on January 3rd. Kingsville Naval Air Station, about 22 miles north of Sarita, dipped to 26 degrees around 8 AM before the sun finally brought a relative warming trend. Times were estimated based on the Kingsville observations and those from northern Hidalgo County.

Wider weather episode

Following a second day where temperatures struggled to escape the 30s, and wind chill temperatures held in the 20s for much of the day in most areas, overnight temperatures slid back to or below the freezing point (32 degrees) across much of the region during the late night through the early morning hours of January 3rd. Unlike the prior two mornings, where pockets of light drizzle fell with the freezing temperatures to create conversational glaze ice, January 3rd was precipitation free, after light precipitation fell in the form of a cold light rain during the evening of the 2nd.

Sunshine finally arrived to most areas on the 3rd, allowing temperatures to rise into the lower 50s by afternoon. With lighter north winds and dry low levels, the stage was set for the coldest morning, area wide, on January 4th.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 738186. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.