Wintry blast brings cold temperatures, little snow to North Texas

A wintry blast in North Texas is plummeted temperatures and brought some light snow flurries to select areas.

A thin band of snow/sleet mix moved into the area Thursday afternoon that left some northwestern counties with some brief snow flurries, but nothing accumulated. The bigger concern is the frigid temperatures. Thursday night was the first of several nights ahead of below-freezing weather.

A winter weather advisory originally issued until 8 p.m. was canceled since the warm weather prevented and wintry precipitation to stick to any roads. There were no major road issues either.

A wind advisory remains across North Texas until midnight with gusts up to 47 mph.

After-School Cancellations

With wind chills in the lower 20s and teens, several school districts postponed or canceled Thursday’s afterschool games and activities. Aledo ISD, Denton ISD and Northwest ISD were some of the first districts who announced their cancellations.

The weather was tolerable for the Aledo High School players’ earlier games. Then, it got cold and windy before it briefly snowed on the field. But the threat of icy roads became the real game changer.

"We don't want people traveling on the buses and stuff if there are icy roads,” explained Aledo soccer coach Derek Vierling.

Coaches did all they could to keep their teams warm in wintry weather.

"We do extra warmup time. And when we have any kind of substitution, we give players a few extra minutes to get ready and keep them bundled up on the sidelines,” Vierling explained.

Several high school teams played in Allen men's soccer showcase. Coaches said they would only cancel the showcase if it became icy. The teens are thankful it didn’t.

For the teens on the field, endorphins and a focus on winning seemed to keep their minds off of the frigid temperatures.

Parents already knew the drill and dressed warmly to go out and support their favorite players.

“Soccer gets the cold weather, but I wouldn’t have it any other way,” said Brandy Beasley. “My son is a senior, and I’m going to make every game, rain, shine or very cold — like today.”

Other districts said they are monitoring the weather, but have not announced any cancelations.