Over the next 12 hours, wind chills could reach 25 below zero in Kentuckiana.
The National Weather Service has issued a Wind Chill Advisory for much of the WSLM Listening Area, from 9p Thursday night through Friday at 11a.
Current counties include Scott, Washington, Jefferson, Clark, Jackson and Jennings.
According to the weather service, temperatures below zero combined with winds of 5-10 miles per hour, will push wind chills into the 17 to 25 below zero range.
The National Weather Service in Louisville relayed that the cold wind chills can cause frostbite in as little as 30 minutes to exposed skin.
The cold will spread from portions of North Central Illinois through Indiana.
Frost bite and hypothermia can occur if precautions are not taken. Make sure to wear a hat and gloves and protect all exposed skin.
The American Red Cross has the following cold weather safety tips if you need to get out.
As temperatures drop this winter, the American Red Cross offers ten steps people can take to stay safe during the cold weather.
1. Layer up! Wear layers of lightweight clothing to stay warm. Gloves and a hat will help prevent losing your body heat.
2. Don’t forget your furry friends. Bring pets indoors. If they can’t come inside, make sure they have enough shelter to keep them warm and that they can get to unfrozen water.
3. Remember the three feet rule. If you are using a space heater, place it on a level, hard surface and keep anything flammable at least three feet away – things such as paper, clothing, bedding, curtains or rugs.
4. Requires supervision – Turn off space heaters and make sure fireplace embers are out before leaving the room or going to bed.
5. Don’t catch fire! If you are using a fireplace, use a glass or metal fire screen large enough to catch sparks and rolling logs.
6. Protect your pipes. Run water, even at a trickle, to help prevent your pipes from freezing. Open the kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors to allow warmer air to circulate around the plumbing. Be sure to move any harmful cleaners and household chemicals out of the reach of children. Keep the garage doors closed if there are water lines in the garage.
7. Better safe than sorry. Keep the thermostat at the same temperature day and night. Your heating bill may be a little higher, but you could avoid a more costly repair job if your pipes freeze and burst.
8. The kitchen is for cooking. Never use a stove or oven to heat your home.
9. Use generators outside. Never operate a generator inside the home, including in the basement or garage.
10. Knowledge is power. Don’t hook a generator up to the home’s wiring. The safest thing to do is to connect the equipment you want to power directly to the outlets on the generator.
