Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 400 PM EDT Thu Oct 24 2019 Valid 00Z Fri Oct 25 2019 - 00Z Sun Oct 27 2019 ...Flash flood potential from eastern Texas into the lower Mississippi Valley... ...Temperatures will be significantly colder than average across the south-central U.S. on Friday, with another surge of cold air to enter the northern U.S. by Saturday morning... ...Conditions favorable for the spreading of wildfires will remain across portions of California through Friday... An early season winter storm system will begin to wind down across northeastern New Mexico into the Texas Panhandle early tonight but a strong cold front will allow significantly cold air into Texas and Mexico. Friday morning lows will support below freezing temperatures from the Panhandle regions of Texas and Oklahoma down into the Trans Pecos region of western Texas. Highs on Friday will be 20-30 degrees below average across the Southern Plains. Just ahead of the cold front, anomalous moisture will spread into eastern Texas, the central Gulf Coast and eventually the lower Mississippi Valley. Periods of heavy rain are expected in eastern Texas tonight, slowly spreading east for Friday and Saturday, with the threat on Saturday reaching the Ohio Valley. Storm total rainfall through Saturday evening is expected to range from 2-4 inches from eastern Texas into the middle and lower Mississippi Valleys. Expansive high pressure in the western U.S. will continue to promote favorable conditions for the spreading of wildfires from northern California into southern California tonight and Friday. The greater threat on Friday is expected to exist across the Transverse and Peninsular Ranges surrounding the Los Angeles and San Diego metropolitan regions with a combination of gusty winds and low relative humidities. Beginning Friday night, another surge of cold air is expected to enter the interior Northwest into the northern High Plains from Canada. High temperatures on Saturday will range roughly 10 to 20 degrees below average from Washington and Oregon into Montana and the western Dakotas. This will be the beginning of a large scale push of colder air to reach much of the western and central U.S. for early next week. Otto Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php