In a remarkable meteorological turn of events that’s not altogether unusual for the month of October in Pennsylvania, the Lehigh Valley has gone from enjoying highs above 80 to being placed under a National Weather Service freeze watch in the span of about a week.
The freeze watch issued Wednesday afternoon is for Northampton, Lehigh and other southeastern Pennsylvania counties and is for late Thursday night and Friday morning, when the temperature is forecast to drop to 32 degrees.
A freeze watch means sub-freezing temperatures which could kill crops and other sensitive vegetation are possible, and area residents should take steps now to protect tender plants from the cold, according to the National Weather Service.
The cooler-than-average weather that is forecast for Thursday and Friday is likely to continue through the weekend and into the early part of next week, according to the latest forecast, which calls for highs in the low to mid 50s and lows in the upper 30s to low 40s. Sunday’s high temperature during the Saucon Valley Spirit Parade is forecast to be just 49 degrees.
