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The Cold War: Chilly Weather Will Last Another Day

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By MIKE SALINERO, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 3, 2008

Updated: 01/03/2008 12:11 am

TAMPA - Now that you've weathered what may end up being the coldest night Tampa Bay residents will face this winter, it's time to thaw out and get ready for another cold 24 hours or so.

The freezer door hasn't completely shut on the Canadian cold blast that dropped overnight temperatures in the Bay area to the high 20s and low 30s. Highs today are not expected to climb out of the 50s and most of the area will see the mercury drop back into the 30s tonight.

"We're not out of the woods yet," said Nick Petro, National Weather Service meteorologist. "Some spots north of Tampa are still going to be below freezing."

Temperatures should start climbing Friday as wind shifts from the north to the south. By Saturday, the area should warm to temperatures in the mid-70s.

For residents with cold-sensitive plants, it's OK if you want to leave those plants covered, said Laura Miller, Hillsborough County extension agent.

"It might not be a bad idea if it's going to be a cold night again," Miller said. "And you might want to irrigate if it's your day. Irrigation helps keep the soil warm."

People who want to uncover their plants today to irrigate them should wait until the sun's up. That also goes for uncovering wrapped water pipes.

"I would wait until the sun's out," said Chuck Detari, owner of Chuck's Plumbing in Tampa. "It's going to quickly get up to the 40s, so it should be safe then."

Your Cold Chances Not Affected

The rapidly changing weather - from warm to freezing and back to warm - has some people worried they are at increased risk of getting sick. That widely held belief has no basis in science, however, said David Atrubin, epidemiologist at the Hillsborough County Health Department.

"I don't think there's anything in the scientific literature that supports that," he said.

Atrubin said a new study suggests cold viruses might survive longer in cold weather with low humidity. That's all the more reason to wash your hands often and keep them away from your eyes, nose and mouth. People with colds should also wash their hands and cover their noses and mouths when they sneeze and cough to prevent spreading disease.

The cold weather also is likely to exacerbate dangerous wildfire conditions across the state. Undergrowth, dried out from two years of below-normal rainfall, will become a lethal fuel once the freeze kills it.

"It takes about three days for vegetation to die after the frost," said Ronda Sutphen, fire prevention officer for the state Division of Forestry. "Then it will be dry. If we get low humidities and winds, we could definitely have fire problems around the state."

Residents who plan on burning during the coming week should be mindful of the dry conditions, she said.

Precautions were being taken at the Hillsborough County and Tampa water treatment plants to make sure sensitive equipment didn't freeze. Pam Greene, environmental services manager for the Hillsborough Water Resources Department, said plant workers were removing water from some equipment exposed to the cold, and making sure heat strips were in place and working on outdoor pipes.

"We're protecting it like homeowners are protecting their pets and their plants," Greene said.

Eli Franco, spokesman for the Tampa Water Department, said the same precautions are being taken by the city. Work schedules will be beefed up this week to deal with expected pipe cracking.

After the concrete pipes contract from the extreme cold, they expand as the weather warms, causing the cracks. The problem is worse in old water distributions systems such as Tampa's.

Farmers Check Losses

In the agricultural areas of Hillsborough County and surrounding counties, people who farm fruit or vegetables or raise tropical fish are assessing damages from the cold. Most farmers spent the night watching the mercury with one hand holding a hot cup of coffee and the other on the valve that turns on the sprinklers to coat the crops with ice. The icy coating protects the crops from frostbite.

In eastern Hillsborough County, strawberries are the biggest concern.

Mike St. Martin, who runs St. Martin Farms in Plant City, said he planned on starting his sprinklers at 8 p.m. Wednesday and had workers applying Pam, the nonstick cooking spray, to sprinkler valves and heads to make sure they worked in the cold weather.

Normally berries stay on the plant a little while longer, he said of the push to pick before the freeze. "They're a little pinker than we'd like, but they'll ripen up."

The amount of water expected to be pumped Wednesday night prompted the Southwest Florida Water Management District to issue an advisory for residents who live in the agricultural areas of eastern Hillsborough County to turn their well pumps off.

Water district officials said the large amounts of water used by farmers to spray their crops would lower aquifer levels. When groundwater falls below the level at which residential wells draw their water, the pumps can burn out. The district suggested switching all residential private well pumps off until well after sunrise today.

Reporter Keith Morrelli contributed to this report. Reporter Mike Salinero can be reached at (813) 259-8303 or msalinero @tampatrib.com.

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