Kevin Myatt

Latest entries from the Weather Journal blog

• Weather Journal taking a long break
• Yes, there's still an Atlantic tropical season going on
• Freezing temperatures likely tonight

About Kevin

Kevin Myatt grew up in Arkansas to the tune of tornado sirens and the rhythm of hailstones, aspiring to be a meteorologist before his studies and career were turned to journalism instead. Though he often chases storms, he prefers living in the cooler, more tranquil weather of the Blue Ridge. He moved to Roanoke in 1999 to take a job on the copy desk of The Roanoke Times; writing headlines and editing copy is his principal work for the newspaper today.

Each May, Kevin assists Pulaski County High School / Virginia Tech meteorology instructor Dave Carroll in leading college and high school students to the Plains to observe severe weather firsthand. The accounts of many of his storm chases can be found here on the storm chasing page of his weather blog on roanoke.com.

Kevin was an editor for "Hurricanes and the Middle Atlantic States," a book written by D.C.-area weather enthusiast Rick Schwartz and published by Blue Diamond Books that documents hurricanes striking the mid-Atlantic states since colonial times.

The Weather Journal column began in 2003 and appears on Friday's Virginia section front in The Roanoke Times. The Weather Journal blog began in 2006 and follows weather day-by-day between the larger columns.

As frigid as it was, the region's cold snap could have been even worse

When Maine sets an all-time record temperature, you know it has been a historic Arctic outbreak.

That may have happened at Big Black River, Maine, which recorded a temperature of 50 degrees below zero on Friday morning. The National Weather Service will closely scrutinize the data and equipment before it can officially declare the new record.

No records were established in Southwest Virginia, but the sharp cold snap was certainly worthy of its billing. Roanoke's low of 3 degrees and Blacksburg's low of minus 4 on Saturday morning were the lowest temperatures since February 1996.

This Arctic outbreak could have been even worse if two factors had been present: (1) Blocking high pressure in the North Atlantic to lock in the Arctic air mass, drive it even farther south and keep it from slipping away so quickly. (2) Snow cover.

Not having No. 1 is also a big reason we don't have No. 2. The chilly weather will not easily go away this week, and some days won't get above 40. Through Friday, there doesn't look to be a lot of precipitation, but some weak disturbances could trigger light snow.

The best chance will be early today. Amounts of up to an inch are possible in the Roanoke Valley, with a little more to the west.