In case you didn’t know, the Peninsula is fixing to get cold temperatures, high winds gust and possibly snow.
Jeff Orrick, meteorologist-in-charge at the National Weather Service office in Wakefield, said there’s a forecast for two cold fronts — on Tuesday night which could lead to icy roads on Wednesday during an early commute, and another in the evening into Thursday morning.
“Thursday morning is going to be the absolute worst,” Orrock said.
While the cold weather won’t stay long, it’s going to be be brutal, he said, with a 5-degree wind chill — so 40 degrees really feels like 5.
“We’ll be lucky to get out of the 20s,” he said in reference to Thursday’s weather forecast.
The radar at NWS Wakefield had been up and running since last Friday. Here’s a weather timeline to help you plan the rest of the week:
Tuesday
- Evening- 36 degrees, 15-mph wind, showers from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and a light dusting of snow from 9 p.m. to midnight.
Wednesday
- Morning- mid to upper 20s and possibly icy roads.
- Midday- possible high of 40 degrees, 25-35 mph wind gusts (feels like 20 degrees)
- Evening – temperature drops, wind picks up and temperature will feel like 5 degrees
Thursday
- Morning- 15 degrees, 5-degree wind chill
- Midday/evening- low of 20-22 degrees and high of 27-29 degrees
Friday
- Morning- 20-22 degrees
- Midday/evening- 30-40 degrees and 20 percent chance of snow
Saturday
- Morning- upper 20s-30s degrees
- Midday/Evening- up to mid 40s degrees
Sunday
- Morning/midday/evening- around 50 degrees
Monday
- Morning/midday/evening- close to 60 degrees
Cold weather tips
Not sure how to prepare for the weather? Check out some tips from Dominion Energy about the upcoming cold weather.
Dominion knows extreme cold weather can result in higher electricity usage for homes and businesses so the company compiled some energy saving tips as well as tips on what to do if an outage occurs.
Energy-wise tips:
- Make sure your fireplace flue is closed when not in use to keep warm air from escaping your home.
- Operate ceiling fans in clockwise direction so they push the warm air back down.
- Close the heat registers and doors in rooms that are not being used.
- Use towels or old blankets to seal areas at the base of exterior doors where heat often escapes.
- Keep the water heater set at 120 degrees. If your water heater is located in an unheated space, install an insulation wrap on the heater and adjacent pipes to prevent heat loss.
- You can find additional energy-saving tips at dominionenergy.com/home-
and-small-business
If outages should occur:
- If your power goes out, report it at dominionenergy.com/outage-
center or call 866-366-4357. - Turn off major appliances such as heat pumps and electric stoves. Wait a few minutes before turning these appliances back on once the power is restored. This will help prevent large initial demands and help ensure your power stays on when the lines are reenergized.
- You can check for outage updates at dominionenergy.com/outage-
center using smartphones or tablets.
