Why Freeze Watches and Warnings Are Confusing...

In late winter and early spring, we occasionally have freeze watches and warnings issued for Region 8. They are issued when freezing temperatures are expected after the start of the growing season. In late autumn and early winter, they are issued for the first few freezes of the season. Here's the problem: We have 4 National Weather Service offices that cover the counties in Region 8. Each one has different criteria for a "Freeze Warning", so on a night like tonight, the freeze warning map looks like this:

As you can see, the NWS in Memphis has issued a Freeze Warning for about 1/3 of Region 8. the NWS in Paducah, Springfield, and Little Rock did not issue a Freeze Warning. If I showed the viewers the map above on TV, some people would think they are not going to freeze tonight because their county is not turquoise. In reality, most of Region 8 will be at or below freezing on Wednesday morning.

Therefore, you will not see me showing the map above on TV tonight. My job is to communicate the forecast to you guys in an easy-to-understand format. So, I'll be showing you this map, which shows the counties that will likely have a freeze tonight:

This is not a jab at the National Weather Service. They are doing their job based on the criteria for their respective offices. We just need to do our job to communicate these impacts to viewers.

So, if you have some flowers or other vegetation out already, cover them!

Have a great evening!
Ryan

Freeze Warnings Criteria:

Paducah NWS: Widespread freeze expected with temps falling to ≤ 32F across the CWA. A killing freeze occurs when temps fall to 30°F or lower for at least 2 consecutive hours. Spring – initiated after coordination with UK Ag Wx Center and County Extension Offices, but no later than April 10. Fall end date – once a widespread killing freeze occurs. Normally not issued after Nov 1, unless it has been an abnormally warm fall and no widespread killing freeze has occurred. Source here

Memphis NWS: Temperatures ≤ 32°F during the growing season, the first freeze in the fall, or when a freeze is expected after vegetation has budded/bloomed in spring. The growing season ends with the first minimum temperature below 28°F. Source here

Little Rock NWS: Issued when temperatures are expected to reach 32°F or colder in the growing season. This product is usually issued during the locally defined growing season, or to highlight the first few freezes of the fall, or unusually late freezes in the spring. This product can also be issued for over a widespread area for when the temperature will remain below 32°F for a prolonged period. Source here

Springfield NWS: Can't find online.