The arctic air mass giving chills to people across Southwest Louisiana is expected to hang around into Friday.

Temperatures as low as 20 degrees with wind chill readings of 11-18 degrees have been forecast for Thursday night and Friday morning.

National Weather Service Lake Charles Senior Meteorologist Joe Rua said temperatures will begin to slightly modify over the weekend with a chance for rain Saturday night into Sunday.

Heavy rainfall or severe weather is not anticipated, he said.

“A better warm up will be for the early to middle part of next week,” Rua said.

In the meantime, frostbite and hypothermia are real possibilities and precautions need to be made to prevent that. Warning signs include confusion, shivering, difficulty speaking and sleepiness. Pets will also need to be brought inside or have a warm shelter.

Temperatures are expected to climb as high as 40 degrees by noon on Friday and then drop into the 30s Friday night and into Saturday morning.

A small craft advisory is in effect for the entire coastal waters.