Maryland endures dangerously cold weather through Sunday

Friday through the weekend are First Alert Weather Days due to brutally cold weather in Maryland. 

Be alert to dangerous well-below-zero wind chills each morning. Out of the three days, Sunday will feature the worst feeling cold due to the strong winds.

Make sure you are ready for an extended period of unusually cold weather. Look after loved ones and be alert to people in need in your area. Find a list of winter shelters here.

Bitterly cold weather in Baltimore through Sunday

The next few mornings are going to be brutally cold. Wind-chills between 0° and -20° will be common before 9 a.m., especially on Saturday and Sunday. The coldest wind-chills will be outside of the Baltimore Beltway each morning, but even in Baltimore, feels-like temperatures will reach subzero levels. 

Aside from the cold, our forecast is dry in central and northern Maryland through Tuesday of next week. North to northwest winds will be on the breezy side Friday and even breezier on Saturday. The windiest day will be Sunday with wind gusts 35 to 40 mph, which will lead to brutally cold wind-chills. The cold will be especially painful Sunday due to the strong winds and low temperatures. 

The intensity and duration of the cold could freeze and break water pipes. The risk of water main breaks is also increasing. Please make sure your home is properly winterized and protected from extreme cold.

Ensure your car tires are properly inflated, you have windshield washer fluid levels checked, and your car batteries are in good health. 

Lastly, despite ice appearing to be thick enough to walk on over many waterways, stay off the ice. Ice depth can change quickly, and wind or current could lead to quick changes in the ice condition.

Weekend storm could bring snow to beaches

A powerful coastal storm is set to develop near or over the southeastern United States on Friday night into Saturday. Ironically, widespread snow will fall across some of the same areas that dealt with freezing rain and power outages last weekend. The storm will quickly become large and powerful over the weekend as it slowly tracks off the coast of the Carolinas. Some area like the Outer Banks of North Carolina may pick up nearly a foot of snow. 

The worst of the storm will stay offshore, but fringe impacts will hit Maryland beaches. A few inches of snow accumulation are possible at Maryland beaches, like Ocean City. The biggest local impact will come from gusty winds. Temperatures will be in the teens and 20s on Sunday, with winds gusting up to 40 MPH. Wind chills will drop well below zero on Sunday morning and only reach the single digits at best on Sunday afternoon. 

Gradual thaw early next week in Baltimore

The extreme cold will ease for a few days next week as we get a brief break from a brutally cold weather pattern. Monday and Tuesday will feature sunshine with highs in the lower to middle 30s, which will allow for some gradual melting. Since the nights still will be very cold, a refreeze with black ice will be a problem for the morning commutes Tuesday and Wednesday.

A clipper system may bring snow showers or a round of light snow Wednesday into early Thursday. While accumulations shouldn't be large, a messy coating to an inch or two is possible if current model trends hold.

Stay with the WJZ First Alert Weather Team throughout the weekend for updates on the dangerous cold.