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Warm and sunny today, strong cold front arrives Saturday

Strong winds Saturday will lead to elevated fire danger
Sunshine on the Gulf waters - Photo By: FB Coastal Bend Weather Watcher Bill Peace
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CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — If you enjoyed yesterday, then you're certainly going to love today as we'll get another day of beautiful sunshine in South Texas along with warm and breezy conditions.

We're starting off with some patchy dense fog over parts of the Coastal Bend, primarily for our inland communities, and it's dropping visibility to around 1-2 miles or less. Use caution on the early morning commute and get to your destinations safely. The fog is forecast to quickly burn off as sunrise starts.

High pressure is lingering close by in the Gulf of Mexico and we'll see our winds shift more southerly today, which will help temperatures warm up to the upper 70s to low 80s for many.

Then, big changes arrive early tomorrow morning with a strong cold front pushing into South Texas. The front will arrive around 3 a.m. - 4 a.m. for our northern counties and completely push through the entire area by 7 a.m.

The front brings a few hazards. The first will be the wind. Winds will be sustained around 20-30 mph with gusts approaching 40-50 mph.

This has resulted in Small Craft Advisories and Gale Watches to be posted by the National Weather Service. They'll be in place all day Saturday.

The next concern is the elevated fire danger. Fire Weather Watches have been posted for nearly the entire area due to the strong winds, dry air, and dry vegetation which will result in the potential for rapid wildfire spread. Outdoor burning is highly discouraged as well as any activity dealing with flames or sparks.

We'll be seeing at or below freezing temperatures on Sunday and Monday morning. You may want to take precautions now to protect vegetation and make plans for outdoor pets.

The cold air will be short-lived because by early next week, beginning on Monday MLK Day, we'll have milder air move in by the afternoon and highs will go back up into the mid to upper 70s through the middle of the week.

The next front will arrive Wednesday night and into Thursday morning. That cold front has more moisture to work with and will bring scattered showers to the area and our best rain chance so far this year.

Today: Mainly sunny, warm and breezy...High: 79...Wind: SSE 10-20 mph.

Tonight: Cold front arrives early in the morning, strong winds and cooler temperatures come in along with some stray showers...Low: 52...Wind: SW/NW 10-15/15-25 mph.

Saturday: Cold front early with a few showers, temperatures drop, very windy, high fire danger, Gale Watches posted...High: 64...Wind: NNW 15-30 MPH with gusts approaching 50 mph.

Sunday: Very cold AM with freezing temperatures, chilly in the PM with less wind and lots of sunshine...High: 61...Wind: NW 10-20 mph.

Monday: Another very cold AM with freezing temperatures, milder in the PM with more sun and light winds...High: 70...Wind: SSE 5-10 mph.

Tuesday: Mainly sunny, breezy and warm...High: 76...Wind: SSE 10-20 mph.

Wednesday: Few more clouds, very warm and windy...High: 79...Wind: SSE 10-20 mph.

Have a great weekend and stay warm!