KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The first hard freeze of fall will arrive in East Tennessee as a cold front moves into the area -- just in time to provide a true Halloween chill!
Halloween night is shaping up to be the coldest since 2014. Temps should be in the upper-to-mid 40s for most of the viewing area when trick-or-treaters are out and about.
The fun isn't over after trick-or-treaters go to bed, because we'll also dip below freezing overnight!
Some parts of East Tennessee were already 20 to 25 degrees cooler on Monday compared to Sunday as the front arrived, bringing some scattered light showers along with it.
A Freeze Warning goes into effect for all of East Tennessee when the clock strikes midnight and will last until 10 a.m. Wednesday.
Lows are expected to drop down into the upper 20s for Knoxville and the rest of the Valley overnight.
If you've got any surviving seasonal outdoor plants, then say goodbye until next spring. Nature is about to bring an end to the growing season.
Highs will reach in the 40s Wednesday with another night of freezing temps in the upper 20s overnight into Thursday morning, but there will not be a Freeze Warning for that night.
The reason: There won't be any seasonal plants left to protect after the first freeze! The first hard freeze is also called the "killing freeze" because there's not much you can do to protect plants this late into autumn, save bringing them inside where it's warmer.
The National Weather Service stops issuing Freeze Watches/Warnings after the first widespread hard freeze of autumn because that means we've reached the end of the growing season. The next time you'll see these warnings is when spring arrives and we hit the start of the next growing season.
