Cold Front Kicks Off Showers Today, Cooler Temps Tomorrow
I was visiting with one of the young ladies that run the counter at Lafayette's Jambalaya Shoppe on Saturday morning about how business for the restaurant could be picking up quite a bit on Monday (Today). The reason for that sudden spike in business? That would be the anticipation of cooler temperatures and an increased appetite for gumbo.
Today the endless, well seemingly endless, summer of 2019 will finally loosen its grip on Acadiana and South Louisiana for a couple of days. A cold front located this morning over central Arkansas and north Texas will push southward across the state today. By this afternoon the frontal boundary should be close enough to the I-10 corridor to kick off a few showers or thunderstorms.
As the frontal system pushes through the state and into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico cooler drier air will begin to filter into the area bringing some much-needed relief from a summer that has been filled with sweltering heat indices and scorching sunshine.
In looking at the timing of the frontal passage it appears as if our best chances of rain in the Lafayette area will come during the middle of the afternoon. Best guesses would place a 30% to 40% chance of scattered showers in the area between 1 pm and 5 pm.
Behind the front, a light northerly breeze will bring in cooler temperatures for Tuesday morning. Early morning temperatures along I-10 on Tuesday after expected to be in the lower 60-degree range. Don't get too used to the cooler temperatures though. By the end of the week, high temperatures will again be in the upper 80s for most of the area.
By the way, don't let this taste of Autumn fool you. While many of you will be whining that it "didn't really get cool", rest assured that cooler weather you're wishing for will be arriving next Saturday. Long-range forecasts put weekend morning temperatures in the middle 40-degree range.
Heads up to the Jambalaya Shoppe, y'all gonna be needing to bring out the big pots by next weekend.