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Cold Front Could Set Record Lows For This Time Of Year

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By NEIL JOHNSON

The Tampa Tribune

Published: April 15, 2008

TAMPA - Two weeks ago, the weather felt more like May or early June, but a cold front that crossed the state Monday could make the next few days feel more like January.

The front could shove temperatures down to levels some locations haven't seen in April since 1950.

The National Weather Service said low temperatures could set records today and Wednesday morning, especially east and north of Tampa.

One front arrived on Sunday and cooled things slightly.

Wind off the Gulf of Mexico overnight kept temperatures along the coast and at Tampa International Airport from dropping too far on Monday morning.

The air picked up warmth from the 70-degree Gulf of Mexico water and kept the coastal areas warmer than inland, where temperatures fell to the low 50s or below, said Paul Close, weather service meteorologist.

With the front heading south of the Tampa Bay area, colder air will drain over the state and keep the daytime temperatures about 70 and temperatures this morning about 50 in Tampa and lower inland.

Those temperatures are more typical of January, Close said. Wednesday morning should be the coldest as clouds clear and the wind drops tonight, allowing the ground to release its stored heat.

Forecasts for Wednesday morning hover in the high to middle 40s for most of the Tampa Bay area or even high 30s in Plant City.

In Pasco and Hernando counties, forecasts call for temperatures in the 30s. Some spots that normally are colder and isolated from any wind may see a touch of frost.

Close said such a late chill is not common but that one does roll through once in a while. A dose of cold came in on April 14, 2004, but the nights of April 15 and 16, 1950, set the standard for mid-April chills.

Record low temperatures for April 15 were set in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Lakeland, Plant City, Inverness and Bushnell in 1950.

On April 16, 1950, Bartow, Bushnell, Tampa, Fort Myers, Tarpon Springs and Plant City measured record lows.

Though it appeared the last cold snap in late March might be the season's final chilly fling, it is likely this will be the last time temperatures will be this low before the long summer starts.

"In August we'll want to bottle a day like this and open it," Close said.

Reporter Neil Johnson can be reached at (813) 259-7731 or njohnson@tampatrib.com.

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