A cold front will push through Florida, bringing a chance for severe storms on Friday night. This line will continue to push southward, and some showers could affect Central Florida overnight into the morning hours of Saturday. By late Saturday morning, some scattered showers and more isolated storms will arrive at Lake Okeechobee. As the front becomes more diffused, the chance for even fewer storms is still in the forecast for South Florida, but it will be even more scarce on Saturday afternoon.
Isolated strong to severe t'storms ⛈️ will be possible today, especially across northeast FL as a cold front moves through. T'storm wind gusts of up to 40 to 60 mph and small hail are the primary threats. Stay weather aware today. Don't let storms surprise you! #flwx #gawx pic.twitter.com/W6EfjwSV4W
— NWS Jacksonville (@NWSJacksonville) April 11, 2025
This front will push dry and cool air over Florida for the weekend. There could also be windy conditions that combined with dry air, could enhance the fire threats across Central Florida, the Treasure Coast, and South Florida. Please make sure to avoid activities that involve fire this weekend if you live in the Sunshine State. Remember, we’re still dealing with a drought dominating much of the peninsula, especially along central and south Florida, where some areas are experiencing a severe drought. The dry vegetation and winds could easily propagate any spark that ignites, especially on Saturday.
This Wildfire Awareness Week, #MDFR reminds you of these safety tips in case of a wildfire:
— Miami-Dade Fire Rescue (@MiamiDadeFire) April 9, 2025
✅ Monitor for updates
✅ Evacuate if instructed to do so
✅ Protect yourself from smoke
✅ Remain indoors
✅ Do not return home until instructed by authorities pic.twitter.com/6h2NP5OJVa
Marine conditions this weekend
Small craft advisories will stay in effect across the Gulf Coast along the Panhandle through Saturday morning. There’s a risk for rip currents that will remain in effect between Friday night and Saturday night along the west central coast of Florida.
On Sunday, the seas along the southeast Florida beaches will be more elevated, with seas up to 4 feet and occasionally up to 5 feet along the coast. The wind will be mainly out of the northeast, around 10 knots.
With the high-pressure system shifting east of Florida by Monday morning, the winds will return mainly from the east along the peninsula, rebounding the temperatures. For the beginning of the week, the temperatures will stay slightly above normal for this time of year, with temperatures in the low to mid-80s from South Florida through Central Florida and North Florida.
Long-term forecasts show another front pushing through early Wednesday morning along the Sunshine State. This front seems weaker, but it could still bring another subtle push of cold air that will be especially felt across northern Florida, the Panhandle, and Central Florida. For South Florida, expect the temperatures to be nudged closer to average temperatures for this time of year with slightly dry air filtering over the region, making conditions feel very comfortable.
Some stats - could this be the last push of coolish air?
For the Miami area, in April, we first had a temperature of at least 85° F on April 9th, 1999. Every year since then, we’ve had at least one day with temperatures of at least 85° during the first four months of the year. The average high temperature for Miami in April is 83.6 F. May's average high is 86.7 F.
Orlando has marked warm temperatures of at least 85 degrees every year for the last decade and a half during the first three months of the year. A 'late warm' temperature of at least 85 degrees this century occurred on April 9, 2010. Before this, we had to return to 1969 to have this warm temperature come after April 1. On average, the date with at least 85 degrees is February 12. April's average maximum temperature is 83.6 degrees, and for May, it is 88.4 F!
Jacksonville last recorded its first 85° F April temperature in 2014. Since then, the first 85° temperature has come between January and March every year. Jacksonville's maximum average temperature for April is slightly cooler at 79.8 F. But get ready, because the average high for May jumps to 85.6 F.
The same trend holds true for the data across several cities in Florida. Most of these stations record warm temperatures earlier in the year in recent years. We notice a big jump in average temperatures between April and May, which could be a good indication that fewer fronts arrive in May, not nudging these averages lower and keeping the warmth at bay and ramping up for the summer months.
