MS Coast ending 2023 with freeze warning, and another cold front expected to begin 2024
After a mild Christmas, temperatures along the Mississippi Coast are plunging for the new year, with the National Weather Service issuing a freeze warning from midnight until 10 a.m. Friday.
Temperatures are expected to dip into the low 30s by Friday morning, with clear skies through the weekend.
While the forecast shows temperatures hovering above freezing along the Mississippi Coast on Friday and Saturday morning, they could dip below 32 degrees, said meteorologist Megan Williams of the NWS office in Slidell.
The NWS cautions that temperatures could get low enough to kill crops and other sensitive vegetation and damage outdoor plumbing. Residents should also make sure pets are protected from the cold.
Cold weather shelters are opening Thursday evening in Hancock and Harrison counties.
Coast residents should awake to a warmer morning on New Year’s Day, with a low in the high 40s, accompanied by a 30% chance of rain. The high could reach the low 60s before another cold front descends Monday afternoon, Williams said.
Highs should be in the 50s and lows in the upper 30s on Tuesday and Wednesday along the Mississippi Coast, she said.
The NWS weather outlook shows temperatures will be lower than usual through Jan. 6 along the coast, from Louisiana through Florida.
Cold weather shelter openings
Hancock County will open a cold-weather shelter from 7 p.m. Thursday until 8 a.m. Friday at the Emergency Operations Center Building at 18333 Highway 603 in Kiln.
Residents who need a ride can contact Hancock County Central Dispatch at 228-255-9191.
In Harrison County, two cold-weather shelters will open Thursday and Friday nights. A shelter will operate from 4:30 p.m.-to 7 a.m. both nights at the D’Iberville Multipurpose Center at 10395 Automall Parkway in D’Iberville and from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. both nights at the Salvation Army Center of Hope, 2019 22nd St., Gulfport.
