A resident shoveling snow (Credit: Karolina Grabowska/Pexels)
Montgomery County officials once again extended a Code Blue emergency weather declaration through next week as a bitter cold settles on the region.
The alert was initially issued Jan. 11 and has been stretched periodically in recent weeks amid plummeting temperatures. The latest iteration will last until 9 a.m. on Feb. 2.
These emergency weather declarations are typically issued when the weather or wind chill is expected to drop below 32 degrees. A number of alerts have been issued throughout the season with several periodic extensions occurring since late November 2025.
As people across the region continue to dig themselves out of snow from Sunday’s storm, the area will experience frigid conditions over the next few days with the National Weather Service’s Mount Holly, New Jersey office forecasting “temperatures in the 10s and 20s during the daytime and single digits to below zero at night through the weekend.”
In addition to temperatures, a Jan. 26 report from the National Weather Service stated that “dangerously cold wind chills between -15° and 0° are expected to return, leading to an increased risk of hypothermia and frostbite.”
Paul Fitzsimmons, lead meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Mount Holly, New Jersey office, anticipated that “snow and ice are gonna be sticking around” as a Cold Weather Advisory remains in effect until 10 a.m. Wednesday.
“With the really cold temperatures, things are really going to be pretty frozen, so it’s going to … make snow and ice removal challenging for sure because we’re gonna be well below freezing,” Fitzsimmons said.
Fitzsimmons added meteorologists “are watching another potential storm for next weekend,” but it’s not yet clear what it could bring weather-wise. A high of 25 degrees and a low of 12 degrees on Sunday, Feb. 1 with a 35 percent chance of precipitation, according to Accuweather, and “mainly cloudy, breezy and quite cold with a chance for snow” in the forecast with “the potential for a major winter storm.”
Acccuweather forecasts “bitterly cold” temperatures through the rest of the week, with a high of 19 degrees and a low of 1 degree on Wednesday, a high of 17 degrees and a low of 1 degrees Thursday and a high of 14 degrees and a low of -10 degrees on Friday expected in the county seat of Norristown.
Increasing concern over the county’s homeless population remains ever present as officials work to provide temporary shelter to protect people from the elements. Montgomery County operates nine Code Blue shelters, and those in need of assistance during periods of inclement weather should contact the Your Way Home call center at 610-278-3522 for more information. County officials added in a Tuesday statement that “if you see someone in need of immediate emergency assistance” to call or text 911.
“Each shelter has a defined capacity, but if any site reaches capacity—or if a location must temporarily close — we immediately activate our emergency hotel protocol, so no one is turned away. Our priority is ensuring that every person has access to a warm, safe place during this cold weather,” Montgomery County Communications Director Megan Alt said in a Monday statement to MediaNews Group.
Montgomery County officials encouraged area residents to check on elderly neighbors and offered the following tips during Code Blue conditions:
• Make sure your car is winterized with antifreeze, a full tank of gas, properly inflated tires, and is stocked with an emergency kit.
• Check your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.
• Wear appropriate clothing and avoid prolonged exposure when going outdoors in winter weather.
• Limit pets’ time outdoors during extreme temperatures.
