Frost advisory issued for McDowell County as temperatures dip overnight

Home gardeners, outdoor workers, pet owners and residents in McDowell County’s colder hollows and higher elevations had one overnight job Thursday: protect anything tender before temperatures slipped into the mid-30s. The National Weather Service in Charleston had McDowell County under a frost advisory along with Raleigh, Wyoming, Fayette, Nicholas, Greenbrier, Summers, Monroe and southeast Pocahontas counties, while northwestern Pocahontas County was under a freeze warning.

The agency’s regional map update, timestamped Thursday, May 7, 2026, at 10:34 p.m. EDT, showed active frost and freeze headlines across much of southern West Virginia. The same evening’s zone forecast, issued at 1:03 a.m. EDT, called for a cool Thursday night followed by sunshine and warmer temperatures Friday, with nearby zones expected to reach highs in the mid-60s to around 70.

The warning mattered because late-season cold can catch people off guard after spring warmth. Gardeners who had already planted vegetables, moved potted flowers outside or uncovered early blooms faced the most immediate risk, especially in sheltered valleys where frost settles first. The weather service said its frost-freeze program is designed to alert gardeners and growers when protective action may be needed for tender vegetation, and it defines the growing season as the stretch between the average last spring freeze and the average first fall freeze. Frost advisories and freeze warnings are issued only during that local growing season.

The local fire-weather forecast for McDowell County, issued May 6, added more detail to the overnight setup. It said a cold front and several waves of low pressure would bring rain showers through Wednesday night, then cooler air would follow on Thursday. Frost was possible Thursday night into Friday morning, mainly in the mountains and sheltered valleys, before drier weather briefly returned Friday and a warming trend continued into the weekend.

That pattern fit the broader spring picture already seen in McDowell County. On April 20, the county was also under a frost advisory while most other counties in the region were under freeze warnings, a reminder that the first warm stretch of the season does not end the threat of overnight cold. For Welch, Gary, War and other communities across the county, the message was simple: cover or move vulnerable plants overnight, check pets and outdoor items before dark, and expect the warm-up to arrive Friday.