(5/8/2020) - A hard freeze is expected Friday night as temperatures fall to near record low values in Mid-Michigan.
An arctic air mass will settle in over Michigan throughout the day on Friday and that will result in a very cold night Friday night.
A Freeze Warning has been posted by the National Weather Service for Lapeer, Genesee, Saginaw, Shiawassee, and Gratiot counties until 9:00 a.m. Saturday.
Overnight temperatures are expected to drop into the middle 20s across Mid-Michigan.
Counties not included in the warning will see temperatures just as cold but the growing season has not officially begun in those areas so that is why they are not included in the warning.
The official forecast from the ABC12 First Alert Weather teams calls for a low temperature of 25 degrees in Flint and 26 degrees in Saginaw.
The record low for Flint on Saturday is 26 degrees set back in 1974, and in Saginaw it is 25 degrees set in 1947.
The lowest temperature in May that has ever been recorded was 22 degrees in Flint back in 1966 and in Saginaw, it was 24 degrees back in 1923.
This data is from the National Weather Service.
Whether or not temperatures break the record, this very cold air is expected to damage or kill crops and other sensitive vegetation. Outdoor plumbing could also be damaged.
People should take steps to protect their plants from the cold by covering them or bringing them inside, if possible.
Over the next several days, more frost/freeze conditions will be possible.