Polar Vortex Drops Local Temps To -5; Wind Chills Even Colder

Frostbite will continue to be a concern for anybody remaining outside for an extended period of time.

Lowest wind chills recorded Wednesday, January 30. National Weather Service image

(Lawrenceburg, Ind.) - Thursday will be another day of record cold temperatures freezing the tri-state.

Temperatures in the morning bottomed out at about -5 due to Arctic air forced into the region by a polar vortex. The wind chill could have it feeling like -20 at times. A Wind Chill Advisory remains in effect until 1:00 p.m. Thursday.

Some schools will be back on normal schedules Thursday. Most others announced delays or closures by Wednesday afternoon in anticipation. Find a full local list of closings and delays here.

The City of Harrison has opened a public warming center at the Harrison Community Center for those in need of emergency shelter.

Another morning of sub-zero temperatures will start another busy day for Triple-A.  The auto club says they've had a major uptick in calls for help since temperatures started to plummet this week.  Most drivers are calling to get dead batteries jump-started.  Auto club members are urged to be patient if they do have a problem because of the increased number of calls. 

There are signs of better weather ahead. The Anderson Ferry has resumed operations Thursday morning. Perfect North Slopes will reopen at 9:30 a.m. after operations were suspended Wednesday.

A relative heat wave is coming this weekend. The tri-state could flirt with temperatures near 60 on Sunday.

[7:22 PM] A reminder that just because the Wind Chill Warnings were downgraded to Wind Chill Advisories in four Indiana counties & seven Ohio counties in no way mean that it's still not going to be cold, & that you'll still need to take precautions. pic.twitter.com/0xbEn6VWlT

— NWS Wilmington OH (@NWSILN) January 31, 2019