wxman57 wrote:Everything is setting up pretty much as forecast, with a major ice storm possible for central and southeast Texas. The emphasis should be on CENTRAL Texas rather than the Houston to Beaumont area, though. The air won't be quite cold enough across Houston for any freezing rain until tomorrow night through Tuesday night. What you'll see tomorrow is the secondary surge of Arctic air reaching Houston in the morning after sunrise and the front moving off the entire TX coast. Temps will slowly fall, down to the upper 30s by mid afternoon, mid 30s by sunset, and possibly below freezing by late evening. That's when the threat of icing in the Houston area begins.
It may be difficult to get much ice south and east of downtown, as temperatures there may hover in the 33-35 degree range Monday night through Tuesday night. Best chances for significant accumulations will be north and northwest of a line from Victoria to Bush Intercontinental airport. Areas south of that line may see some icing on elevated surfaces, but it may not be cold enough for much ice on the ground, particularly the streets. Bridges could get icy, though, even on the south side of Houston. Doesn't take much ice on a bridge to cause big problems.
As far as damage, I think for the greater Houston area, the main threat will be for slick roadways and hazardous travel. North and west of central Houston is where the ice may be heavy enough to cause problems with trees and power lines. San Antonio, Austin, Waco, College Station -- that area -- will likely see the heaviest accumulations. For downtown Houston south through Clear Lake, Friendswood, Pearland, maybe a trace to 1/4" of ice, not necessarily on roadways except for bridges.
What do you think the accumulations could be like in N/NW Harris county?