Even though the weather forecast for South Florida this week is about as good as it gets, storminess in the Northeast could cause some travel challenges through the holidays.
South Florida weather looks stable throughout this week, with clear or mostly sunny skies, daytime temperatures in the high 70s and evening temperatures in the high 60s.
“It will be windy through Tuesday,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Chuck Caracozza. “After that it’ll be dry through the rest of the week — not too much in the way of travel concerns.”
Christmas Day will be mostly sunny, with a high near 79, with northeast wind up to 10 mph. The days following Christmas should remain mostly sunny through the weekend, with pleasant temperatures in the mid to high 60s at night and in the high 70s in the daytime.
The Northeast, a common travel destination for people leaving South Florida, will be more tempestuous.
Tuesday will bring snow across New York State, Pennsylvania and southern New England, with about 3 inches expected north of New York City and an inch or so to the south.
Things will clear up for Christmas Eve, with sunny skies and a high of 44. Temperatures will drop to 31 overnight and Christmas morning will be mostly cloudy, but with a fairly low chance of rain.
The period between Christmas and New Year’s should remain cool in the Northeast, and AccuWeather meteorologists say that a series of quick-hitting storms — some packing snow and ice — will traverse the region between Christmas and New Year’s.
The National Weather Service is calling for snow in the New York area from Friday through Saturday, then shifting to rain on Sunday. Forecasters said Friday afternoon and Friday evening would see the greatest likelihood of accumulation.
The middle of the U.S. will be drastically different. An undulation in the jet stream will bring a bubble of warmth to the south-central part of the U.S. this week, stretching from Colorado and Texas to parts of the Appalachians and north to parts of the Midwest.
Temperatures should be 15 to 30 degrees above the historical average by Christmas Day. “At this level, the warmth will be comparable to late April or early May,” said AccuWeather meteorologist Alyssa Glenny.
Oklahoma City could see highs in the upper 70s, said Glenny. The warmth will shift to the east coast as the week progresses.
Though that sounds like good news for travel, AccuWeather warns that “low clouds and fog from the Gulf Coast to the Appalachians and Atlantic Coast due to the warmth could reduce visibility, disrupt road travel and cause flight delays.”
A busy week for a busy region
Regardless of the weather, this year’s holiday season will be busy. AAA has projected 8.03 million domestic air travelers, the first time on record that the number will exceed 8 million. That’s a 2.3% increase compared to last year.
Orlando, Fort Lauderdale and Miami are the top domestic destinations for holiday travel this year, said AAA.
Arlene Satchell, spokesperson for Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and North Perry Airport, advised that travelers “stay in close contact with the airlines to see if the flights are delayed and to avoid coming out to the airport to be stranded, to sit and wait.”
The South Florida Sun Sentinel tried to contact spokespeople for Miami International Airport and Palm Beach International Airport, but hadn’t received a response Monday afternoon.
Satchell said that Fort Lauderdale International’s busiest 17 days of the year kicked off on Saturday, Dec. 20, and will run through Jan. 5. “We expect 2.1 million people to pass through,” she said.