White Christmas on Treasure Coast? Keep dreaming
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If you’ve been dreaming of a white Christmas like Bing Crosby, it likely won’t happen on the Treasure Coast this year.
Still, the temperatures on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day — Saturday and Sunday, respectively — are forecast to dip to the mid 30s to low 40s, Brendan Schaper, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Melbourne, said Wednesday.
“Up and down the Treasure Coast, much like most places across East Central Florida, it's going to be a cold start both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day mornings,” Schaper said. “Looks like for most everyone, though, mid 30s to low 40s, both mornings.”
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Schaper said wind chill values will be a factor, noting winds out of the north northwest between 10 and 15 mph at times along the immediate coast.
“At times, on Christmas Eve morning, we could see wind chills ranging from the upper 20s to the mid 30s,” Schaper said. “On Christmas Day morning, we'll see upper 20s to mid 30s wind chill values.”
The temperature drop can be blamed on areas of high pressure over the west coast of the United States and Greenland, sending south the chilliest airmass this fall and winter for most areas east of the Rockies, according to the Weather Prediction Center.
The advancing cold front is forecast to gush through Florida on Friday, plunging temperatures by as much as 30 degrees below normal in northern areas. The Treasure Coast will feel the bite with temperatures falling about 10 to 15 degrees below normal.
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The coldest Christmas was in 1989 in Fort Pierce when the high temperature reached 53 and the low was 22.
Schaper said the record low for Christmas Eve in Fort Pierce was 19 in 1989.
The last appreciable snowfall on the Treasure Coast fell Jan. 19, 1977, according to TCPalm archives.
Back then, arctic air blasted into Florida, dropping temperatures to 23 in Vero Beach. A light dusting of snow fell as far south as Homestead.
Schaper said this year it's expected to be dry in the area.
“In terms of any chance of a white Christmas here, that's not going to be the case, but we will have temperatures that make it feel like wintertime,” Schaper said.
On Monday, morning temperatures measured at 49 degrees in Vero Beach and Fort Pierce.
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Temperatures Wednesday and Thursday were expected to warm on the Treasure Coast, dropping towards the weekend.
Megan Tollefsen, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Melbourne, said generally during this time of year the highs are in the 70s with lows in the 50s.
“Definitely a little cooler than what we're used to around this time of year,” Tollefsen said.
Palm Beach Post reporter Kimberly Miller contributed to this report.
Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on Twitter @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at will.greenlee@tcpalm.com
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This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Christmas Eve, Day weather expected to dip into 30s, 40s
