Louisiana’s ‘Dangerous’ Forecast Updated – What to Expect Thursday

As I was sitting at my desk in Lafayette Wednesday morning a co-worker who hails from Iowa asked me "Is this cold for you"? Of course, the temperature in Lafayette, Youngsville, Broussard, and a bunch of other places along the I-10 corridor was right at the freezing mark when the question was asked.

But my answer didn't reflect my concern for the cold because, based on forecasts from the National Weather Service, I don't think the "cold" will be Louisiana's biggest weather issue from Thursday night into Friday morning. However, it will play a part in what has been described as a "potentially dangerous" weather situation for Louisiana.

For Louisiana residents who live along and north of I-20, there will be winter weather concerns. Those concerns are specifically in four Louisiana Parishes in the extreme northwest corner of the state. If you live in Caddo, Bossier, Webster, or Claiborne Parish you're under a Winter Storm Warning. 

However, if you live in South Louisiana along the I-10 corridor you might be waking up to an even more dangerous weather situation on Thursday. That would be the threat of flooding rains.

The Weather Prediction Center has placed southwestern Louisiana at a marginal risk for an excessive rainfall event today. Cities such as Lake Charles, Jennings, Crowley, and perhaps Lafayette and New Iberia could experience heavy downpours late today and especially tonight. Rainfall models project amounts of one to two inches will be common across the region.

That same threat will slide eastward during the day on Friday affecting the cities of New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Morgan City, and Slidell. Again there will be the potential for flooding rains and heavy downpours. But at least the temperatures will warm to well above the freezing mark so motorists won't have that as an issue in their daily commutes.

Conditions in both northern and southern Louisiana should begin to improve after noon on Friday. Skies should begin to clear and what precipitation is left should be moving off to the east. The forecast for the weekend does call for a return to more seasonable temperatures but there will also be a slight risk of showers late in the day on Sunday.