Iowans who’ve avoided switching on their furnaces likely will have to break down soon. The forecast calls for cold weather to roll into the state, along with rain and thunderstorms. Meteorologist Rod Donovan, at the National Weather Service office in Johnston, says strong winds will be coming with the rain and a High Wind Watch is posted for Tuesday.
“We’re expecting really strong winds to develop,” Donovan says. “You could see a few gusts around 60 miles an hour in the morning, then it’ll be pretty persistent 40-to-50 mile an hour winds throughout the remainder of the day. We’ll have strong winds again on Wednesday with another round of 40, 50-mile an hour gusts expected on that day.” Donovan says some of the coldest temperatures of the fall season so far will arrive by mid-week.
The storm front will bring some very cold Canadian air with it. He expects moderate temperatures tonight with falling temperatures on Tuesday, while a second cold front is expected on Wednesday night with a hard freeze. Lows may be in the 20s while high temperatures across Iowa on Thursday may only reach the low to mid-40s.
By Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City