Louisiana’s Holiday Forecast Could Change Some Plans

When your family sits down for the big meal next Thursday, what time of day will it be? I don't think there is nearly the disagreement over the best time to eat Thanksgiving dinner than there is over a real or artificial Christmas tree. Regardless, the time you plan to have guests arriving and the time you plan to serve the meal could be impacted by some inclement weather across South Louisiana, especially on Thanksgiving Day.

Weather will be a featured story on the national newscasts over the next several days. That's because the storm system that is going to bring us showers and storms on Thursday will likely cause more than a few headaches for those who are trying to make it to or through some of the nation's larger airports.  You can also expect a much higher volume of people moving through those airports this holiday week and the upcoming holiday weekend.

Now, if you're fortunate enough to have some extra time off during this week to make plans for the holidays, you shouldn't have any issue at all, at least in South Louisiana for the next several days. But, there will be a change in temperatures you'll want to plan for.

Today's high along I-10 is expected to be in the middle to upper 70s. If you've been up early you've probably noticed the dense fog too. There was a dense fog advisory posted for southwestern Louisana this morning. That probably won't be necessary for the morning though.

During the evening hours, a cold front will slide across the region, there will be a chance of showers but forecasters are not anticipating a lot of rain. In fact, the rain chance is only 40% and mainly during the night and overnight hours.

Monday it will be cloudy in the morning but clearing for the afternoon. Temperatures will be about 10 to 15 degrees cooler tomorrow than they will be today. The breeze will make it feel cooler too.

There should be no weather issues for the Gulf South between Monday and late Wednesday, so if you're travelling earlier in the week, the weather should not be an issue unless you are scheduled to depart on Wednesday. And, if you're travel plans carry westward you'll likely run into showers and thunderstorms much sooner in your travels than later.

For South Louisiana Thanksgiving Day, Thursday appears to be the day when we will experience the wettest of our weather for the week. Rain chances are about 60% in the long-range forecast right now, so they are subject to change but a lot of the forecast models are in agreement. Based on that observation, I'd expect some rain in South Louisiana between Wednesday afternoon and Black Friday Shopping the day after Thanksgiving.

So, if you're a part of a large Louisiana family, you might have to adjust the seating arrangements since "outside seating" might be a little tenuous. Granted, this doesn't look like an all-day rain storm so, there is a possibility that the rain could pass and you could still seat guests outside.

Black Friday shoppers will be pleased to hear that it will actually feel cool on Friday morning. That might enhance your Christmas Spirit as you roam the region looking for the biggest and best holiday deals.

Other than Thanksgiving Day there shouldn't be any real weather-related issues for you to deal with. Just be safe on the roadway if you are going to be driving.