New York City is poised to get a taste of winter this weekend as colder temperatures and strong winds will combine to make it feel especially chilly.
While the highs on Saturday and Sunday are forecast in the low 50s, sustained wind gusts from 15 to 30 mph will make it feel more like the low 40s, according to the National Weather Service.
Temperatures will plummet further after the sun goes down, meteorologist James Tomasini said.
“At night, wind chills will make it feel like the temperature’s down in the mid-30s,” he added.
North and west of the city, winter-like weather made a more dramatic landfall on Thursday into Friday morning, with enough snowfall to make driving treacherous and delay some school openings.
City emergency management officials warned drivers to watch out for slippery roads.
The weather also led to about 200 flight delays on Friday at local airports, according to FlightAware, an aviation tracker.
The cooler, more seasonable air follows weeks of warmer temperatures and little to no precipitation, which sparked hundreds of brush fires in and around the city. Mayor Eric Adams earlier this week banned open flames and fireworks amid a historic drought warning.
Thursday’s rain provided welcome relief and helped alleviate some of the fire risk by wetting down dry brush and leaves. Tomasini said it was still unclear if the precipitation was enough to pull the region out of the recent drought conditions.
“We’ll kind of have to wait for when they put together the new drought monitor,” he said. “But it was good to see this all-day rain event.”
More showers are expected throughout the day and overnight on Friday, before drying out for the weekend. The next chance of rain could be early next week, and then again around Thanksgiving, according to Tomasini.
Monday is expected to be slightly warmer, with highs in the mid to upper 50s and less wind.