Get out your jacket. Cool front coming to South Florida; dry air leads to fire warning
It may be spring break in South Florida, but grab your jacket Monday evening as temperatures are expected to plunge more than 20 degrees overnight.
Expect a low of 50 degrees Monday night-Tuesday morning, down from a high of about 78 on Monday afternoon. The cooler weather will continue in the night and early morning through Saturday, forecasters say.
The cool weather stems from a Midwest cold front, bringing with it dry air, leading to windy conditions on land and sea and a rare fire warning Monday. The weather service posted fire warnings for most of Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Monroe counties until 8 p.m. Monday.
“When you have low- pressure systems, cold fronts tend to form,” said Ana Torres-Vasquez, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service Miami. “Behind the cold front, you have a mass of cooler, dry air.”
Humidity dropping, fire risk higher
As the cold front hits Florida, humidity levels may drop between 20% to 30%, replacing South Florida’s typical humid air with drier air, said George Rizzuto, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Miami.
“That makes it easier for fires to spread,”’ Rizzuto said.
The National Weather service is urging residents to avoid any outdoor burning to prevent a blaze from spreading. Monday is expected to be a breezy day.
There will likely be scattered showers and thunderstorms on Monday night. Temperature highs will be in the 70s — and lows in the 50s — throughout most of the week.
Fire weather warnings are rare in South Florida. The last warning was in January 2023 and was caused by similar dry vegetation, windy conditions and a lack of rainfall.
The weather is also leading to a higher chance for rip currents in the Atlantic and hazardous winds and seas. Beachgoers and boaters should remain vigilant. Additional hazardous marine conditions are expected at the end of the week with another cold front passing through, forecasters say.
This story was originally published March 16, 2025 at 5:06 PM.
