Oak pollen already a big problem, but strong storms could wash it away

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The oak pollen explosion is already upon us as we enter the month of March, but we won’t have to wait much longer for some rain to help wash some of our pollen problems away. Unfortunately that rain could also come with severe weather.

Muggy air will stick around on Wednesday with fog possible mainly near the coast, but stronger winds will likely keep the fog from getting too dense.

Isolated showers are possible in the morning, then the sun will break through the clouds to warm temperatures into the mid 80s. The south breeze will kick up at 15-25 mph to help a bit with the warm temperatures.

Thursday will bring similar weather, but Thursday evening could bring a round of severe weather as our next cold front blows in. Those going to the rodeo Thursday night will want to stay weather aware.

What kind of severe weather could we get?

Damaging gusts from straight line winds will be the primary threat from Thursday evening’s line of storms. The line will be racing in from the west and reach Houston sometime in the 9PM or 10PM hour. Quarter-size hail is also possible, and we cannot rule out a brief spin-up of an EF-0 tornado. Thankfully this does not look like the same kind of setup in January that brought strong tornadoes to Southeast Texas.

Could there be any flooding Thursday night?

Street flooding is highly unlikely due to the fast storm motion, and if any street flooding occurs it won’t last long.

How cold will it get behind this front?

Morning lows could dip into the 40s Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with daytime highs in the 60s and 70s through the weekend. After the weekend we go right back to the warm, humid air for most of next week.

Now that we’re entering March, could we still get another freeze?

Why yes, yes we could! A signal is growing stronger that March’s version of an arctic front could reach us sometime between March 10th – 15th. If this signal verifies, a light freeze or frost will be possible during the first half of Spring Break.