Backdoor Cold Front Brings Freezes Across Southwest, Plains

A late‑October backdoor cold front is bringing subfreezing temperatures across the Southwest and southern Plains, prompting freeze watches and warnings from Arizona and New Mexico into Colorado, the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, Kansas and southwest Nebraska. Many locations are forecast to fall into the 20s, with some Colorado basins possibly dipping as low as 12°F and early‑morning lows in parts of the Front Range and Denver metro near the low 20s. Local warnings include areas east of Tucson and Cochise County, freeze warnings for Flagstaff and the Little Colorado River Valley, and a possible first‑of‑season freeze for the Albuquerque and Santa Fe metros Wednesday morning. The South Plains (including Lubbock‑area counties) experienced strong northerly gusts into the 40s mph as temperatures plunged; officials are urging residents to protect tender plants and crops, drain or wrap outdoor plumbing, and bring pets indoors. Winds will be breezy to gusty in many areas but most forecasts call for a quick warm‑up and a return to mostly dry, warmer conditions later in the week.