Milwaukee set the record for its warmest Jan. 30 on record on Thursday. A high temperature of 56 degrees was recorded at 2:44 p.m., according to data from the National Weather Service. This overtook Milwaukee's previously warmest Jan.

The city saw its warmest-ever Jan. 30 in 1988; it was 53 degrees. Milwaukee's average Jan. 30 high is 31 degrees.

MILWAUKEE — It was a day of record warmth in southern Wisconsin! Temperatures in Milwaukee surged into the mid-50s. Thursday's high exceeded the Jan. 30 record of 53 degrees at Mitchell Airport, set in 1988, according to the National Weather Service.

The Extreme Cold Warning is in effect until noon. Wind chills will remain below zero until Wednesday afternoon.

The Milwaukee area will see light snow all day as the region experiences another round of frigid temperatures. Flurries will move across southern Wisconsin throughout the early morning on Wednesday, followed by light snow showers until 2 or 3 a.

Milwaukee will kick off this week with the most extreme cold of the winter so far. During the coldest periods, wind chill is forecast to range between -15 and -30 degrees. That's well beyond the threshold for developing frostbite and other adverse health symptoms from cold-weather exposure.

Tuesday was one of the 10 coldest Jan. 21 temperatures in Milwaukee's recorded history. Here's where it ranks: Cold sets in over Milwaukee on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. All of Wisconsin is under an Extreme Cold Warning Tuesday morning due to wind chills as cold as -35 degrees in some portions of the state.

The center at 12th and Vliet is open from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Monday and Tuesday due to the cold. Nick Tomaro with the Milwaukee Health Department said more than 100 people took advantage of the center on day one. Darnell Bonner said on Sunday, he was rushed to the hospital for hypothermia while waiting for a shelter to open.

A Cold Weather Health Advisory has been issued for Milwaukee County. The health advisory is in effect from 9 p.m. Sunday, Jan 19 through 9 p.m. Monday, Jan 20.

Bitterly cold temperatures and wind chills as low as -32F are expected during this period, posing significant health risks, including frostbite and hypothermia.

The great Charles Dickens used the phrase in "Oliver Twist" writing, "We cut over the fields at the back, with him between us — straight as the crow flies — through hedge and ditch." But how exactly did the groundhog become the deciding factor — at least in the realm of myth and mystery — in determining when exactly winter will end and spring begins?

The Old Farmer's Almanac, which has been in business since 1792, recently released its spring weather forecast. The outlook? "Warmer-than-normal temperatures for most of the country, with a few exceptions: southern and central California, Desert Southwest, southern Florida, and western Ohio Valley, where it will be near to below normal."