Bitter Cold Not Seen For Years

The stark change in our highs this weekend could be tough to stand, given how nice it's been lately. The coldest air of the year is soon to arrive in KELOLAND, courtesy of Siberia and Alaska.

Icy north winds and the deep freeze aren't exactly rare in winter. Sioux Falls averages more than 25 days a year with lows dipping below zero. And this particular round could be the worst in quite a while. The northeast looks to get the brunt, with lows near -25.  We haven't seen readings like that in almost two years. 

In 2011, Aberdeen, Watertown and Sisseton all fell to -21 degrees on February 10.  Sioux Falls and Huron both dropped to -20 degrees on that date.  Before that, Sioux Falls had four days in January 2010 with lows of -20 or worse. 

Even with the bitter cold coming this weekend, records are more likely to fall for highs on Friday than lows on Monday. The mark for Rapid City stands at 59 degrees for the high, but we'd have to drop to -25 degrees to best the previous low.