Forecasters said cold temperatures will persist for the remainder of the week.
Christian Cassell is the lead meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Jackson. He said the current weather system is transitioning away from last weekend’s snowfall into bitter cold.
“We’re looking at widespread temperatures dropping to between five below zero and five above zero, so kind of around zero overall,” Cassell said. “Wind chills may be as low as 10 below zero.”
Additionally, Cassell said a new weather system will bring snow back into the mix this week.
“That looks to arrive sometime late Thursday or early Friday morning and last through most of Friday and will likely linger in some of our upslope, mountainous locations even into early Saturday before it ends,” he said. “This coming weekend, behind the snow, it’s going to be very cold again.”
Officials warn that frostbite can occur on exposed skin in under 30 minutes in temperatures this low.
Cassell said while this week will be very cold, temperatures will likely rise to above freezing by next week.
For now, several places in the region are open as warming centers, including the Morehead Police Department and the Salvation Army Emergency Shelter in Ashland.