85-year-old record for cold could fall tonight in Paducah

An 85-year-old record for cold is in jeopardy tonight in Paducah.

The National Weather Service office in Paducah is forecasting a low of 20 degrees on Tuesday morning.

That will approach Paducah's record low for the date at 19, set in 1941.

The latest date in the year that Paducah's temperature has fallen into the teens was on March 27, set in 1955, when it fell to 17. (The day before, it plummeted to 12!)

Tonight's cold will be compounded by northwest winds gusting to 20 miles per hour, making the wind chill feel like single digits.

Tuesday will likely stay in the upper 30s, but the warmup will be dramatic by the first weekend of spring.

The rest of the week's forecast highs are 60 Wednesday, 72 Thursday, 77 Friday and 80 on Saturday.