If you thought this week was cold, just wait. The most frigid air of the season will be settling in to welcome the new year.
But first, we will have a little snow to contend with. Let's start there.
Light snow will develop from west to east Saturday. The snow will begin between 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. Saturday and continue through 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
While the snow will not be heavy, it will fall on extremely cold ground allowing it to accumulate immediately. Any untreated roadways tomorrow will be slippery and dangerous due to the light snow compacting and turning into ice. Any neighborhood that has hills could be an ice skating rink.
What about salting, you may ask? Even main roadways could be slippery as road salt and chemical solutions are less effective when the ground and air temperatures are this cold.
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The bitter and extremely cold air that follows Saturday's light snow will be downright dangerous.
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Overnight wind chills Saturday will fall to near 0 degrees in Philadelphia, and below zero in the suburbs to the Poconos. Those wind chills will not improve New Year's Eve Day. The cold will only worsen Sunday evening for New Year's Eve celebrations with feels like temperatures dropping below zero, even in Philadelphia.
That's why the Mummers are considering postponing the parade on New Year's Day. Aside from the concerns about frost bite and hypothermia, the string bands are worried their brass instruments may freeze.
The intense and brutal cold won't be brief, either. Those feels like temperatures will remain in the single digits through Tuesday.
Because of this extreme weather, we've issued a First Alert from 5 a.m. Saturday through Tuesday evening.
It's important that you check on friends, family, and neighbors that may be vulnerable to the extreme cold. Now is also a good time to make sure your house and car are adequately equipped to handle the cold.
We put together a list of 20 Winter Weather Tips to keep you, your family, your pets, and your home safe in this winter: click here.
