VERO BEACH — A wave of frigid air led The Salvation Army to reopen its facility as a cold weather shelter on Wednesday. The temperature plunge comes before another cold snap this weekend, where wind chill values were expected to drop below 20 degrees for Vero Beach, meteorologists said.
The Salvation Army Vero Beach branch will operate as a cold weather shelter from 7 p.m. Wednesday Jan. 28 through Thursday Jan. 29, according to Indian River County Emergency Service officials. The shelter is located at 2655 5th Street S.W., north of Oslo Road and northwest of South County Park.
Clients will be accepted until 9 p.m. Wednesday.
Light meals will be provided at the shelter, according to The Salvation Army officials.
The shelter will serve the first 40 people who register. Residents can register on site or by calling The Salvation Army at 772-453-5383.
“Please take protective actions for vulnerable populations, pets, and plants/agricultural products, and use caution when operating indoor heating sources,” representatives from The Salvation Army said in a statement.
Overnight, Vero Beach will have a low temperature near 36 degrees with a wind chill value of 30 degrees, said Megan Tollefsen, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Melbourne. So far, no cold weather records have been broken for the Vero Beach area over the last couple of days, Tollefsen said.
Advisories for frost growth and cold weather remain in effect for inland Indian River County. The advisories do not include areas east of Interstate 95, Tollefsen said.
“The frost advisory is a heads up for people to protect their plants,” Tollefsen said. “Conditions are favorable for frost development.”
The cold air will become even more frigid this weekend.
Saturday morning will have a high near 65, which will dip near 27 degrees at night, meteorologists said. Sunday will have a high near 50 degrees, which will fall to about 27 degrees or less at night.
