Chilly week ahead for Tampa Bay

Mario Abadal, pool supervisor at North Shore Pool in St. Petersburg, has had enough of the cold.

During water safety courses this week, it has just been too cold for employees and trainees to stand around wet, he said.

"Getting in and getting out of the water,'' said Abadal, 44, "that's the tough part.

Abadal has tons of sympathizers around Tampa Bay.

It has been a chilly winter. January was sixth coldest January of all time, breaking reams of records. February is off on a similar start. And this week?

"We're looking for 10 to 15 degrees below normal for at least another week, and early next week," said Paul Close, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Ruskin.

Lots of folks are asking: What happened to the Sunshine State?

The problem? El Niño, which tends to bring an active winter storm season in west-central Florida.

Monday started off chilly, and it could prove to be a bright spot in another week of rain and cold.

Temperatures lingered in the low 40s around Tampa Bay on Monday morning, and some areas north and east dropped into the 30s, said Bay News 9 meteorologist Juli Marquez.

Parts of Hernando County had freezing weather.

Another cold front will pass through Tuesday, stirring a chance for rain, and bringing colder weather Wednesday and Thursday, she said.

Marquez said she expects Thursday morning to be near 38 degrees. The record low for that day is 32.

Sunday, Valentine's Day, should bring cool, dry weather in the 60s.