Freeze is coming overnight to large part of Eastern Iowa

A large swath of Eastern Iowa — including the cities of Decorah, Elkader, Vinton, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, Washington and Fairfield — are under a freeze warning early Saturday as a strong cold front sweeps into the area.

The National Weather Service has issued a freeze warning that starts at 1 a.m. Saturday and expires at 9 a.m. in the northern counties and 8 a.m. in counties father south. The warning means that temperatures as low as 28 to 30 degrees are expected.

“Frost and freeze conditions will kill crops, other sensitive vegetation and possibly damage unprotected outdoor plumbing,” the weather service warned. “Take steps now to protect tender plants from the cold. To prevent freezing and possible bursting of outdoor water pipes they should be wrapped, drained, or allowed to drip slowly. Those that have in-ground sprinkler systems should drain them and cover above-ground pipes to protect them from freezing.’

Chilly temperatures arriving Friday are forecast to stick around, and there is a good possibility of more freeze warnings to be issued for the coming days.

“We will likely see some sort of freeze headlines Saturday night, (parts of Iowa) and Sunday night (everywhere) when temperatures are forecast to be in the low to mid 20s areawide,“ the weather service said.

This weekend north of Highway 20, there is a chance for snow, although little or no accumulations are expected.